Beets are an amazing food – there are a lot of reasons why you might fall in love with this ruby-red root.
Beets can help but add color and excitement to any recipe. My friend’s Ukrainian grandmother used to make the most incredible borscht, which is a soup made from beets. I’ll never forget the bright red color and the distinctive flavor of that soup!
I’m always advocating the benefits of eating the rainbow because a healthy diet is a colorful diet. And beets are a rare example in nature that possess this dark, reddish-purple jewel tone.
These are some of the benefits of beets:
Betalains: Pigments that pack a punch
What makes beets such gems? They get their jewel-like hue from betalains, a type of natural plant pigment that provides a health boost. Betalains contain:
- Antioxidants: These natural compounds protect your cells from damage. Antioxidants may lower the risk of heart disease, cancer or other diseases.
- Anti-inflammatory properties: Ongoing inflammation in the body is linked to several diseases, including Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, asthma and obesity.
Betalains are just the tip of the iceberg. Beets have some other things going for them, too:
- Fiber: Beets are high in fiber. Fiber can help you control blood sugar levels, maintain a healthy weight, lower cholesterol and stay regular.
- Nitrates: Beets contain nitrates, which help widen blood vessels. That can help with blood pressure and may also improve athletic performance and brain function.
- Beetroot Vitamins and minerals: Beets — and beet greens — are a good source of folate, a B-vitamin that’s especially important during pregnancy. They’re also a good source of potassium, magnesium and vitamin C.
And the benefits of beetroot definitely do not end with nutrition.
I have spent a lot of time studying the chakras. In the philosophies of yoga and Ayurveda, where the chakras play an important role in understanding the human system, “like increases like” and “opposites balance.”
Root chakra
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Sanskrit Name: Muladhara; root support
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Element: Earth
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Color: Red
Located at the base of the spine, the pelvic floor, and the first three vertebrae, the root chakra is responsible for your sense of safety and security on this earthly journey.
To balance your first chakra, think red. Red apples, beets, tomatoes, pomegranates, strawberries, and raspberries. Also add root vegetables to your diet. Root vegetables grow beneath the ground, absorbing a high amount of vitamins and nutrients from the soil and are rich in folate, vitamin C, antioxidants, and beta-carotene.
This is where beets come in.
If you have a blocked sacral chakra, this can lead to issues with the associated organs, like UTI’s, impotency, and pain in your lower back. Emotionally, this chakra is connected to our feelings of self-worth, and even more specifically, our self-worth around pleasure, sexuality, and creativity.
My Rainbow Bowl recipe is unique because it features not only orange/yellow foods such as yellow beets to work on your sacral chakra, it also contains red beets and other ingredients that support all the chakras. And that is why I call it my Rainbow Bowl!
I have chosen the other ingredients for this beetroot dip intentionally to add complementary benefits as well:
- Garlic: immune-boosting food; from the earth; mineral rich
- Tahini: seeds strong for sacral chakra, which also supports the root chakra
- Avocado Oil: Strong for sacral chakra which also supports the root chakra
- Chickpeas: also a seed that supports sacral chakra, which helps to support the root chakra; also mineral-rich
Recipe
Grounding Roasted Beet Hummus Recipe
This is the Roasted Beet Hummus recipe, ideal for sharing at your next get-together, but also a perfect dip to keep on hand whenever you are craving a healthy snack!
- 2 medium beets (leaves removed, stems cut down to 2”, scrubbed and cleaned)
- 2 15oz jars/cans chickpeas (drained with liquid reserved)
- 1/3 c chickpea liquid (save the extra)
- 1/2 c tahini (extra virgin olive oil can be substituted)
- 1/4 c avocado oil (extra virgin olive oil can be substituted)
- 2 medium lemons (juiced)
- 2 cloves garlic from roasted bulb (recipe below)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt or Himalayan salt
- Optional Garnish: vegan kale, basil, cilantro pesto (fresh herbs – cilantro, parsley, chervil, chives; toasted pine nuts; drizzle of oil)
Preheat oven to 400ºF
Lightly coat beets in some avocado oil and roast in a covered cast-iron pot or baking dish in the oven for about 50-60 minutes.
When fork tender, remove the beets from the oven.
Once cooled, remove the tail and stem off the beets. Cut into cubes.
Combine the chickpeas, 1/3 C of chickpea liquid, tahini, lemon juice, ¼ C avocado oil, roasted garlic cloves, salt, and beets to a high-powered blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Add extra oil to achieve preferred texture.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Transfer hummus to a serving bowl and garnish with fresh herbs or pesto or toasted pine nuts. Serve with crudité (Make a chakra colorful plate, adding chia seed crackers, etc.)
Roasting Garlic Heads/Bulbs: (can just do one or multiple)
- Preheat your oven to 400°F
- Peel and discard the papery outer layers of the whole garlic bulb, leaving intact the skins of the individual cloves of garlic.
- Using a sharp knife, cut ¼” to a ½” from the top of cloves, exposing the individual cloves of garlic.
- Place garlic bulbs in baking pan or muffin tin with the garlic heads cut side up. (A muffin pan works great for this, as it keeps the garlic bulbs from rolling around.)
- Drizzle a couple teaspoons of olive oil or avocado oil over each exposed head, using your fingers to rub the oil over all the cut, exposed garlic cloves.
- Cover the bulb with a metal lid, silpat, or another baking sheet.
- Bake at 400°F for about 30-40 minutes, or until the cloves are lightly browned and feel soft when pressed.
- Cool and remove roasted garlic cloves from their skins. Allow the garlic to cool enough so you can touch it without burning yourself. Using a small knife, cut the skin slightly around each clove. Use a cocktail fork or your fingers to pull or squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out of their skins.
Enjoy!
XO, Serena
