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Performance Boosting Beet Recipes

My sister loves the joke that goes like this: “What did one vegetable say to the other out on the dance floor?” Answer: “Lettuce turnip the beet!”

That’s just what these recipes do.

Beetroots

In all seriousness, beets are a vegetable that has received much attention in the world of athletics, particularly with regards to endurance sports. Beets have a high level of nitrates, which the body reduces to nitric oxide. That dilates blood vessels and increases oxygen delivery to the muscles.

If you’re not an elite athlete, you’ll experience the effects even more strongly. That’s because the higher trained an athlete is, the less helpful beetroot will be on their performance.

Eat your way to a faster PB with these yummy beet recipes:

1) Roasted beets with balsamic glaze

This is a simple recipe for roasted beets with a slight zest to them. In the unlikely event that you don’t finish all of them in one go, these beets keep in the fridge for a few days.Healthy-Chocolate-Muffins-vegan-minimalistbaker.com_

2) Vegan double chocolate beet muffins

These “muffins” are more like cupcakes, but we’ll keep that on the down-low so that you can still eat them for breakfast. These tasty offerings are only 170 calories and ready in less than 30 minutes.

3) Roasted sweet potatoes, beets and asparagus

This recipe makes for a simple and elegant side dish that pairs well with any main. All you need are your veggies, some olive oil and and balsamic vinaigrette.

beet smoothie4) Beet power smoothie

This energizing morning smoothie contains beets, cantaloupe, kiwi, mango, blueberries, chia seeds and your choice of greens– talk about packing a health punch for after a workout!

5) Quinoa salad with roasted beets and chickpeas

This salad is vegan friendly (though for non-vegans, it’s also delicious with a crumbling of goat cheese on top). Have it tonight for dinner and leftovers for a take-to-work lunch tomorrow.

6) Moroccan beet salad with tangerines and cinnamonbeets

Roasted beets combined with tangerines, lime juice and cinnamon creates a dish that seems more like a dessert than a salad. Adding the tangerines on last prevents everything from going pink with the beet juice.

7) Beet and fennel soup with kefir

Fennel is a relative of celery and has a black liquorice flavour to it. Combined with the earthy sweetness of beets, this soup is subtly unique. Instead of cream, this recipe makes use of kefir, a fermented liquid (yay for probiotics!) akin to a thin yogurt.

8) Beet carrot detox bake

Beets, carrots and leeks are baked together in a casserole dish and then smothered in cheese to create this hearty, healthy, vegetarian-friendly meal.

9) Coconut oil roasted beets

This recipe’s author actually refers to these beet tidbits as “vegetable candy.” They make for a great side dish, or addition to a salad, hot or cold.

10) Raw beet slaw with fennel, apple and parsley

Slaw is underrated. Maybe it gets a bad reputation because of the whole cabbage thing, but this slaw is a whole different species, with beets, apples and fennels under a light lemon-honey dressing.