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Bietola da Orto
Spring Beetroot
Appears in
Published 1986
Spring is the time to acquire a bunch or two of little round beetroots.
Boil them in salted water for 20 minutes, slip off their skins, and serve whole, dressed with olive oil, pepper and a thread of wine vinegar. They taste like fruit. Colour: magenta, when grown in Tuscany.
In Apulia a variety quite unknown further up ‘the boot’ is cultivated; it is a glorious pink and of a much finer texture. Prepared as above, but flavoured with the chopped leaves of sedano (green celery) and served with goat’s cheese, in the Sculptor’s opinion ‘a heavenly marriage’. Its dark green leaves stained with red are cooked like spinach.