What to do with BEETS and FENNEL?

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

A friend of mine just gave me some. I've only ever eaten canned beats. Should I roast them? I'd like to do something with the greens, as well. Any good recipes out there?

I have NO idea what to do with the fennel. I've got two bulbs, including the stalks and fronds. I'm really not into strong licorice flavors so I'm looking for a very mild flavored recipe.

Oh, and I'm vegetarian...

 

[ducks4you]

If you have never eaten beets before, I would find a friend who likes them, and make them together, the first time. I didn't think that you could be allergic to them but a friend of mine IS.
That being said, I cut off the tops, clean the roots with water, boil them, remove the outer skin (compost it), and cut if desired. They are pretty sweet. Watch wearing white, though, because they make a great dye!

Never tried fennel.

 

[sparkles2307]

Can the beets, those are treasures!

We grew white beets this year, they taste identical to red beets and no stains on the kids or me!

 

[orionburn]

I wouldn't have a friend anymore if they gave me beets. Those things are the anti-christ of vegetables.

 

[Joz]

From Epicurious.com:

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425°F. Tightly wrap beets in a double layer of foil and roast on a baking sheet until tender, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Cool to warm in foil package, about 20 minutes. When beets are cool enough to handle, peel them, discarding stems and root ends.

They've got recipes for lots of salads that use the beet greens.

 

[ducks4you]

I never tried roasting them, before. Do you get a nice aroma in the kitchen?

 

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

Canned is the only way I've ever had them, so I'm looking to try something different. I think I will roast them this week!

Now for the darn fennel... What does one do with this stuff? I guess I'll google some recipes.

 

[2DogsFarm]

Roasted beets are very sweet but don't give off much aroma while roasting. Still - very YUM!
Slice them up for salads - add goat cheese. Or mix with asour cream & red onion.
Pickle them like any canned beet.
Truly they are more trouble than they are worth - very messy to peel & stain everything you touch.

Fennel is good raw sliced thin for salads - it really doesn't have all that strong a licorice taste, at least to me.
Good with oranges & vinagrette or in a green salad.
You can also roast it - remove the ferny fronds, slice the bulb in half, slice outthe tough core at the root end , drizzle with olive oil and roast until tender.

 

[Yay Chicks!]

I've roasted beets and that is lovely but sometimes I just love them simple. I peel, slice fairly thin and steam. Then I sprinkle them with some rice vinegar for eating cold. I save the beet water, add it to vinegar and pickling spices for making pink, pickled eggs (especially cute when you are using quail eggs).
Love the tops as well. They are nice sauteed and then cooked down with olive oil, sweet onions and balsamic vinegar.
I've experimented with fennel - a little goes a long way! Try googling recipes for fennel. There are also some at Foodnetwork.com

 

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

Hey, thanks for the ideas, everyone! I'm excited to try some of this stuff!