Chocolate beet brownie bites (gluten-free)

Chocolate beet brownie bites are a low-guilt, rich treat but also naturally sweetened, gluten-free and loaded with healthy veggies.

If you're going to eat a rich, chocolately treat, it might as well be loaded with vegetables, right? Think that's not possible? Think again, my friends.

Behold: Rich, dark chocolate brownie bites, finished with crunchy sea salt -- but also loaded with beets, as well as naturally sweetened (zero refined sugar, thanks to sweet dried dates) and gluten-free.

Too good to be true? Nah -- just another stealthy way The Ninj has discovered to get Mr. Ninj to eat his vegetables ... because he's my equivalent of your picky 5-year-old eater, but worse, since I can't threaten to take away his screen time or anything.

Beets. What a seriously misunderstood vegetable! They don't have to be relegated to the roasting pan or pickling jar. They're perfect for baking, too. Beets come in beautiful colors, are naturally sweet and are the key ingredient that makes real red velvet cake red.

You know, if you like cake. (insert snort laugh)

7 ways to eat yer beets (CSA Share Ninja Rescue 2014)

Seven unique and delicious recipes for gorgeous summer beets: enjoy them roasted, pickled or even baked into muffins!

Hey now -- welcome to Week 6 of the CSA Share Ninja Rescue for 2014. You know the drill: You tell me each week what produce from your CSA share (or garden or farmers' market) is giving you fits, and I talk you down from the ledge with a list of delicious, healthy recipes on Tuesdays.

For Week 6, we're talkin' beets. Love me some beets! They are especially delicious roasted but I'm partial to pickling them as well. But have you also considered them for salads? How about burgers? And, best yet, beet muffins?

Behold: Seven unique and delicious recipes for eating gorgeous beets -- all from me and my favorite fellow food bloggers.

Beet pesto and greens pasta

Easy roasted beet pesto, used as a sauce for gluten-free pasta and tossed with peppery beet greens: a gorgeous, healthy dinner that's simple and quick!

There is no more wonderful vegetable than a beet. There: I've said it. I've gone on record:

Beets rule.

Why, you may ask, do I make such a statement? ERMERGAHD, LOOK AT THAT COLOR! What other natural food has that kind of color -- and tastes good? (And yes, I know there are other colors of beets, but we're talking your average, fuchsia, beet-colored beet today, OK?)

However, that stunning color comes with a price: it stains. It stains EVERYTHING. This is an excellent property if you are, say, a Pilgrim who wants to dye your drab flaxen frock a gorgeous hot pink color (well, then I guess you wouldn't really be a very good Pilgrim now, would you?). It's not such a great property if you are simply trying to make dinner without ending up looking like a serial killer.

I know my love of beets is true love because I keep ... (wait for it) ... dedicated beet gloves in my kitchen.

(True story: Mr. Ninj was rummaging in the cabinet under the kitchen sink for a pair of rubber gloves to use in the garage and I shrieked, "Not those! Those are my BEET GLOVES!" Yes, I'm a complete dork.)

CSA Share Ninja Rescue 2013: zucchini, beets and fava beans (10 unique ways)

 
Welcome to another installment of the 2013 edition of CSA Share Ninja Rescue, a weekly feature in which you tell me on Fridays what veg you got in your CSA share box (or found at the farmers' market) that you don't know what to do with and I'll give you a whole bunch of recipe ideas on the following Monday.

Seriously: where else can you get recipe suggestions on demand? OK, other than Google? (snort)

Apparently, the zucchini giant has awoken. I'm still waiting for mine but my readers are already drowning in it. Additionally, other readers are looking for different ways to deal with an excess of beets and fava beans.

So let's jump right in, shall we?

Zucchini

• Lemon zucchini cookies: Citrusy, but they still let the zucchini flavor and texture come through
• Summer harvest zucchini bread: It's like an entire garden in one loaf (pictured above) -- and it's savory
• Sauteed zucchini: This one is simple and comes to you courtesy of my cousin, Susan -- a little side dish her mother, Anna, created to use up zucchini. Add some olive oil to a pan, throw in some minced garlic and shredded zucchini. It tastes almost like broccoli.

Beets

• Cider vinegar pickled beets: Really unique flavor from oregano and thyme
• Beet veggie burgers: So gorgeous and so yummy
• Beet pesto: Probably more like a tapanade than pesto -- makes amazing (and beautiful) crostini
• Beet bread: ZOMG, it's pink bread! Your kids will flip!

Fava Beans

• Grilled fava beans: Perfect if you hate shelling the beans first -- they pop right out after grilling
• Fava puree: Another option for making gorgeous, delicious appetizer crostini
• Fava bean burgers: Says the creator, "If a samosa and a falafel had a burger baby, this would be it"

And don't forget to check out my rescue posts from 2011 and 2012, too, for even more ideas -- we're in our third year of this, after all!

• Zucchini (2011)
• Zucchini (2012)
• Beets and fava beans (2011)

Now, with what veg can I give you a little help next week? Leave a comment -- The Ninj wants to know.

How to make all kinds of pickles (or, the Pickling Ninjipedia)

Pickled golden beets

I'm taking a little bit of a different approach to my entry this month for Grow It Cook It Can It's Cook It! 2012 challenge. (If you've been playing along at home, you know that we have already tackled pasta, bread, butter, cheese, lactofermented veg, jam and canned fruit -- wow, that's a lot, isn't it?!)

You see, the challenge for this month is to make pickles.

If you are a regular reader of The Ninj, you know this is like saying, "This month's challenge is to breath."

I'm a pickle junkie and feel I have already given you more than your fair share of pickle musings this year. So I didn't want to subject everyone to simply one more post on how to make pickles.

Therefore, perhaps cheatingly, for the Challenge, I'm giving you a sampling post: that is, I'm summarizing my pickling escapades all in one place. Let's call it the Ninjipedia of pickling.

(Oh man, I supah like that one!)

Pickles, pickles, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

Quick pickled veg: recipes

Pickled beets and radishes

According to the August issue of Bon Appetit that I just received, you should make some pickles because (and I quote)

Everybody's Doing It!

Yep, surely that's a good enough reason to do anything, right?

Regardless, pickling can be easy, especially if you're making a quick pickle, rather than a preserved pickle (which is still easy but takes more time).

So while waiting for the bumper crop of cucumbers to start pouring in so I can once again put up a whole crapload of Best-Evah Dill Pickles, I tried a few different quick pickle recipes this week, using vegetables that are probably showing up in your CSA share right about now.