I thought I’d planted red chard but when I got back from holiday, I discovered the red shiny leaves and stems rising up in my raised bed were actually a small crop of beetroot. I looked up ‘Beetroot’ recipes in my collection of old recipe books, but wasn’t tempted to bake, boil, or pickle this rather tasteless vegetable, which I’d never really liked, and which according to all the old traditional cooks, seemed best eaten when soaked in vinegar. I even found Mrs Beeton limits her recipes in my copy of her ‘Everyday Cookery’ to Beetroot, Boiled and Beetroot, Pickled.
Seeking inspiration
Fortunately, inspiration came when I leafed through Grandma Abson’s Chutney recipes. Grandma had always found a good way to use up gluts of fruits and vegetables such as apples, green tomatoes, elderberries to make jams and chutneys.
I had about 500g once I’d cut off the tops and tails of the beetroot, so I supplemented these with and the regular apple chutney ingredients, apples and red onions. I decided to boil the beetroot first to soften it before adding the other ingredients.
Here’s what I used :
500g beetroot
2 apples (fallen apples from a neighbour’s garden) peeled and chopped
2 finely chopped red onions
2 gloves garlic (finely chopped)
250ml red wine vinegar (I had this already but could have used white wine vinegar)
3 tbsps balsamic vinegar (to add a tang to the mixture)
2 tsps allspice (usual spice for chutneys)
250g sugar (Demerara sugar as usual for apple chutney)
1 tsp fennel seeds (I’d just collected and dried these and thought they would add flavour)
A splash of lemon juice (always improves a recipe!)
How I made it :
Wash and dry the beetroots and boil for about 30 minutes until tender. Check this by sticking in a fork. Drain and allow to cool.
Peel the beetroots and place in a large pan with the chopped apples, red onions and garlic.
Add the vinegars, allspice, fennel seeds and sugar to the pan and bring to the boil. Then simmer for about 45 minutes until all the ingredients are tender.
Check for flavour and add lemon juice if you wish.
The mixture should be thickened and sticky. Allow to cool then put into sterilised jars. This amount made 2 small jars.
From unloved vegetable to red ruby jewel
I am very pleased with my Beetroot Chutney and even better I’d used up some ‘old’ ingredients from my store cupboard. Grandma Abson’s mantra was “waste not, want not” so I was following in her footsteps.
You usually have to wait for a couple of weeks or so to allow chutney to mature but there was no stopping my family trying out the first jar. I’m saving the second jar for autumn treats when the nights draw in, as a reminder of finding this ruby red jewel of a vegetable in my garden when I got back from holidays!
You can read more about Grandma Abson’s her passion for baking and recipes HERE and head over to Instagram @grandmaabson to see Meryl baking with her grandchildren. And check out the recipes Meryl has compiled for Yorkshire Bylines.
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