Roasted beets are terrific on their own, or as the starting point for a beet salad. Golden beets are sweeter and much less “earthy” tasting than red beets, and their sweet flavor is brought out even more in roasting.
“Beets can be wrapped in aluminum foil before roasting or they can just be rubbed with a little oil before they’re slid into the oven. Beets that are just rubbed with oil and roasted will leak juices and mess up the roasting pan. If you roast beets with neither oil nor foil, they’ll take forever to cook and will dry out.”
4 medium-large beets (about 6 oz each) with root and 1 inch of greens attached (if possible) 1 Tbs. olive oil or vegetable oil ¼ cup butter or 3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
Rub the beets with oil and either place them in a small lightly oiled casserole or oil them and wrap them tightly together in aluminum foil. Even foil-wrapped beets should be put on some kind of pan so if any juices leak out – especially when you’re poking them to see if they’re done – they won’t mess up the oven. Bake in a 400°F oven for 1 ¼ to 1 ½ hours. The beets are ready when they can be easily penetrated with a skewer or paring knife. Don’t bother unwrapping the beets in foil to check them, just poke them right through the foil. Let the beets cool until you can handle them, cut off the root and the greens, and slip off the peel with your fingers, cutting off any stubborn patches with a paring knife.
