A handful of heavy beets dangle from their lush tops in my left hand, and I aim the hose at the muddy roots. With a flash of color, wet and shiny, I am suddenly a preschooler who has just pulled a novel crayon from the first box of 48 Crayolas on Christmas Day. My little sis and I exclaim over this beautiful pinkish, purplish red. What is it? We hold it up for Dad and he reads “Magenta.” We color everything with magenta until that crayon disappears to nothing.

I still feel like Christmas in July when the Chioggia beets start coming in. At my age, candy is fine in small amounts, but it’s a double bonus when fabulous nutrition tastes sweet and looks like peppermint candy. Beets are a superfood, and if you don’t want to pour off the vitamins in the cooking water, try them roasted. Because red beets roast to a perfect coal black, they are not the best choice for roasting. Enter Golden Detroit or Chioggia. The results are very appetizing

For a half dozen medium to large beets use a 2 quart casserole dish with glass lid. Wash, trim, and peel beets. Cut into 1-inch chunks. Toss with 1-2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Strip leaves from a few sprigs of fresh thyme and scatter over beets. Bake at 350 until fork tender, about 1 and 1/2 hours. Cool to serving temperature with lid on. Beets retain better color if they are not exposed to too much air before serving.

Chioggia beets also pickle beautifully. Any good recipe will do. I recommend the simplest ingredients: Cider vinegar, sugar, water, and pickling salt. Add a few cloves if you like. If you are unfamiliar with water bath canning, pickled beets are a good place to start. Find a recipe with directions from one of the main canning companies like Ball or Kerr and success is imminent! Why not serve peppermint striped beets at Christmas dinner?

Remember that Crayon, Magenta?

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