I had high hopes this summer. I had visions of growing pots of fresh green veggies and herbs that I could just reach out and pluck whenever I felt like. Unfortunately, our slightly shady, but lovely patio is not so great for growing very many edible things.
Like me, tomatoes and other tasty fruits and vegetables enjoy basking in the sun. So instead of a mini-garden with fruiting plants, I chose things like salad greens, basil and swiss chard. These I knew, are content with a sliver of sunshine for just a portion of the day.
However, while at the garden center dreaming about owning a farm, I spotted a lovely bunch of just sprouted beets. With visions of gorgeous purple beet salads, I threw caution to the wind and decided to take the chance and try them out.
All summer, I lovingly watered them and weeded them and waited and waited until I could harvest them. When the time came, I was so excited to see what was going on beneath the soil. To see if there was anything juicy at the bottom of the the lovely leafy greens. I could never be a farmer, the wait is unbearable at times.
I was disappointed. It turns out very little was going on beneath the soil. These gorgeous green leaves didn’t have what they needed to grow beets. I suppose I still have a lot of learn about gardening!
So what to do? Though I had grand plans of raw beet salads and roasted beets, I needed to rethink my strategy. Beet greens as it turns out are even more nutritious than the actual beets themselves and just happen to exceptionally tasty too. So what better to whip up than a quick frittata. Frittatas are the perfect solution as they take up barely any of your time and let you use up all the bits and bobs that are lying around the fridge. Add a few eggs and you’ve got a delicious lunch!
Beet Green & Mushroom Frittata
Serves 2
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 small onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3-4 cremini mushrooms, quartered
- 2 cups beet greens, roughly chopped
- 4 eggs
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1/4 cup cheddar cheese
- salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to the grill mode.
Heat a small oven safe frying pan (stainless steel or cast iron) on medium heat until hot. Add the olive oil and sliced onions and then saute until translucent. Add in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or so until fragrant. Next add in the mushrooms and beet greens.
Meanwhile, crack the eggs into a medium bowl. Add the milk and cheddar cheese and season lightly with salt and pepper. Whisk together until combined.
Once the beet greens are wilted, add in the egg mixture and give everything a quick stir.
Cook for about 3-5 minutes until the eggs have set on the bottom and only the top layer remains undercooked. At this point, carefully transfer the pan to a high shelf in the oven. Watching closely, let the eggs get puffy and brown on top. After about 2-3 minutes, once the top is evenly browned, remove the pan from the oven.
Garnish with some chopped beet greens and eat whilst hot!
Fig & Honey 
This was my first year growing beets, too, and many of mine turned out small like yours, but I got a few larger ones — did you thin them out enough throughout the growing process? It’s excruciating (I hated having to pull sprouts!) but necessary to allow them to reach maturity. I love how you incorporated the greens into this recipe, it looks amazing!
Thanks! The greens were very delicious! No, I didn’t end up thinning them out which was the first of quite a few gardening mistakes! I agree, its so difficult to pull out the sprouts – it makes me think of all the beets that could potentially grow from them. Obviously, if you don’t do it, then you wont get any at all! I think I’ve ultimately found out that travelling and gardening don’t go together so well!