Be(a)et bad nutrition

Dear audience,

I am always happy to see that people from all over the world find my blog and read it! This gives me a high motivation to go on blogging and thus maybe be able to change some small things in someones life.

Today I want to give you some information about a vegetable we tend to forget - Beetroot! It is incredibly healthy (more info further below) and you can have it raw in vegetable juices - which of course is always the healthiest and most efficient way of having your veggies - or slightly cooked and used for tasty dishes. 

Beetroot is used a lot in Sri Lanka, so I stumble upon it quite frequently, especially in curries, but also salads. 


Some facts and figures:

Beets are highly nutritious and “cardiovascular health” friendly root vegetables. Certain unique pigment antioxidants present in root as well as top greens have found to offer protection against coronary artery disease and stroke, lower cholesterol levels in the body and have anti-aging effects.

• They are very low in calories (contain only 45 kcal/100 g). Its nutrition benefits come particularly from fiber, vitamins, minerals, and unique plant derived anti-oxidants.
  

• Raw beets are an excellent source of folates (about 109 mcg/100 g) and high amounts of Vitamin C, one of the powerful natural antioxidants, which helps body scavenge deleterious free radicals one of the reasons for cancers development. 

• Beet greens (tops) are an excellent source of carotenoids, flavonoid anti-oxidants, and vitamin A, which is required for healthy skin and is essential for vision.
  
  
• The root is also rich source of niacin (vit.B-3), pantothenic acid (vit.B-5), pyridoxine (vit.B-6) and carotenoids, and minerals such as iron, manganese, magnesium, potassium.
  

So, I guess, now you would love to get an idea about what to do with that beneficial root!
 As mentioned previously, the best way to eat your vegetables is raw as it leaves all the ingredients unchanged. So add them to your vegetable juice or combine them with fruits in a fresh juice. For a salad you can have them raw (crunchy, maybe sliced finely) or slightly steamed if you prefer them a bit softer.

Raw Beetroot & Orange Salad

Ingredients (Serves 4)

8 small beetroot, raw or cooked 1 orange 1 tbsp olive oil Handful fresh coriander Optional: slice of pineapple

How to prepare: Wash the beetroot, to remove any mud Slice finely. If you want to cook it, just scrub and boil for 10 minutes, then slice. Cooked beetroot keeps in the fridge for about 3 days, if in a sealed container. Peel the orange. Cut it in half. Separate the segments, removing the pips. Chop the coriander. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl or layer them on a plate. Optional: if you have any pineapple spare, finish with a slice of pineapple.  Dressing you can prepare to your likings. I would use some extra virgin olive oil, a dash of red wine vinegar, a small amount of lime juice and some salt and fresh ground pepper. Add some chopped walnuts for even more nutritional benefit.  In one of my previously blogs I already presented Borschtsch, which is made from beetroot. You can add slightly boiled beetroot to any of your dishes, it is very tasty also with fish. Or prepare a nice risotto with beetroot. There are many ways to enjoy this super healthy vegetable!