Beet Purée Recipe, an elegant display!
Beet Purée with Duck Breast and Kale
Beet Purée, an elegant display!
I had a real desire to make beet purée after seeing a beautiful image on @cookniche’s instagram post. The color was intense, and made the plate beautiful. So, I worked on making a beautiful and tasty beet purée to pair with duck breast for a dinner in which I was developing a menu. It was lovely! I played around with how much water – bay leaf, or no bay leaf. Garlic or no garlic. I was happy with the outcome.
Seared duck breast with beet purée, peach demi-glace and lemon kale
I also had a great time making strokes on the plate. I figured it was easiest to put the beets in a squeeze jar and squeeze it out in a ball. Then I took different utensils to make different designs. From a fork, trying to make it look like a paint brush, to a spatula as used on photo above.
The turned out fantastic. See my Modern Provençal Dinner Party blog and menu based on the flavors of Provence here.
Beet Purée recipe ingredients
red beets
smashed garlic cloves
thyme sprigs
salt
water
cream
aged balsamic vinegar
Method
Trim and peal the beets. I used about two small ones, and two larger ones. I cut the big ones to match the size of the smallest one.
Place in sauce pan with the smashed garlic and thyme. I used two very large cloves and two sprigs of thyme. Fill the pan with water to almost the top of the beets. Season with salt. I used a little less than a teaspoon. Bring to a boil, then simmer until soft, about 45 minutes.
Let sit for a while before blending. You could leave the lid on, and let sit for an hour so they are not to hot to go in the blender.
Put beets in blender disregarding the garlic and thyme. Put enough cream in to allow the beets to purée. If you feel like the color is becoming to light because you need more liquid, you could ass some of the beet juice. Purée on high until smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes. Be carful blending hot foods. Depending on your amount, you may want to purée them in two batches.
Stir in the balsamic vinegar to taste. I used about a tablespoon.