As we move into summer and look to infuse healthier ingredients into our dishes, why would we consider the beet?
Beets have long been known for nutritional benefits including lowering blood pressure, decreasing inflammation, and helping improve athletic performance. Besides being loaded with vitamins and minerals, beets are also high in antioxidants, carotenoids, and nitrates!
Chef Michael Mina and Chef Adam Sobel via Cal Mare
One restaurant doing it right is Cal Mare in Los Angeles, owned by acclaimed Chef Michael Mina and Chef Adam Sobel. The best on the menu? Beet Campanella, a collaboration recipe with Chef Joe Sasto, is a pasta dish dressed in goat cheese, sage, and black sesame, served with beet-infused pasta.
The Beet Campanelle is a crowd favorite at Cal Mare. Located on the ground floor of the Beverly Center in Los Angeles, the restaurant celebrates the best of coastal Italian cuisine, featuring California’s freshest ingredients.
Cal Mare Interior courtesy of Cal Mare
If you can’t make your way out to Cal Mare Los Angeles just yet, recreate the Beet Campanelle recipe in the comfort of your own home, courtesy of Cal Mare.
Ingredients
Beet Stock:
- 1/2 cup onion, sliced
- 2 cups beet, peeled and cubed
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 quarts water
- 1 blood orange, peels only
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Fonduta:
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/8 teaspoon sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground white pepper, to taste
- 3/4 cup fresh goat cheese
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
Pasta:
- 4 tablespoons Pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated
- 2 tablespoons chives
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 lb. Campanelle pasta
Preparation
- 1 Heat a cast iron skillet to medium hot over medium heat. Peel and quarter beets and onions. Place onions and beets in batches and char each side lightly. Cool and reserve.
- 2 In a large boiling pot over medium heat, add water and bring to a simmer and reduce heat add onions, beets, bay leaf and blood orange peels.
- 3 Cook for 3 hours, then remove from heat, strain, cool and reserve 1⁄2 cup and refrigerate the rest for other uses (risotto, pickling, smoothies, cocktails, to name a few).
- 4 In a medium saucepot over low heat, bring the cream to a simmer, ensuring it doesn’t scald. Immediately remove from heat.
- 5 Place chunked cheese in a blender, drizzle the cream over it, adding salt, pepper.
- 6 Blend on high for 2 minutes and transfer back to sauce pot, whisking in the lemon juice, tasting for flavor and reserve covered, keeping warm while pasta is cooked.
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