Grated Beets: A Pretty Side Dish for the Holidays

photo by FotoDawg on flickr

Start with some big beautiful beats.



Scrub the beats, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast until nice and tender.



Once the beets have cooled, slip the skin off and grate them.



Add these magical ingredients to the shredded beets. I usually include more sour cream and vinegar than the recipe calls for. I just keep adding and tasting until it's perfect for my taste buds.




Grated Beets

Ingredients:
2 lbs medium beats, trimmed and scrubbed
1 T. olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
2 T. cider vinegar
1 T. sugar
1/4 c. sour cream 

Directions: Preheat oven to 375 deg. Drizzle beats with oil, season with salt and paper & wrap tightly in aluminum foil. Bake for about 1 hour until fork tender. Remove from oven: let cool. Peel, and grate on the large holes of a box grater into a large bowl. Drizzle with vinegar: sprinkle with sugar. Toss to combine. Fold in sour cream: serve.

Mint Brownies

I'm pretty sure one pan of these babies caused me to gain five pounds last Christmas. Nonetheless, I made them again this year and I think you should too.



Start with unsweetened chocolate baking squares.




Add the shortening



and melt them together.



Add sugar, eggs and vanilla.



No need to use a mixer for this recipe, just stir with a spoon.

 

Stir in the dry ingredients.



The brownie base in this recipe is not very sweet. It's a nice contrast to the next layer which is an intense hit of sugary frosting.



Blend butter, cream and powdered sugar.



Add peppermint extract and a few drops of green food coloring for that festive touch.



Spread frosting over the cooled brownies and put the brownies in the refrigerator until the frosting hardens.



Now for the the third layer, the chocolate glaze: melt semi-sweet chocolate and butter and spread on top of the frosting.



A plateful of these beauties looks great for a holiday party or gathering. I like them best when they're nice and cool from being stored in the refrigerator.


Mint Brownies

Ingredients: Brownies:
4 squares unsweetened chocolate
2/3 c. shortening
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. brown sugar
1 1/4 c. flour
3 eggs
1 tsp. baking powder
dash salt

Peppermint Frosting:
2 c. powdered sugar
2 T. cream
1/2 c. soft butter
3/4 tsp. peppermint extract
green food coloring

Glaze:
3 squares semi-sweet chocolate
3 T. butter

Directions: Brownies: Melt chocolate and shortening. Add sugar, eggs and vanilla. Blend well. Add dry ingredients. Bake in 9X13 pan at 350* for 25 min.

Frosting: Blend all ingredients well. Place on cooled bars. Refrigerate to harden slightly.

Glaze: Melt together and spread over cold frosting.