beets

I have conquered the tomatoes, grapes, basil, pears and parsley.  Now it is on to the beets.  And juicy, redness everywhere in my kitchen.  I find little red speckles in the most amazing places after I cook them!

Beets have such a sweetness on the tongue, and when combined with salt and pepper, they are amazing.  Cooking them makes my house smell like the earth.  Handling them makes me startled with just how red they are!  Even diluted, beet juice is so red that I find myself playing with it like a kid in science lab. 

Other than hauling the old vines away to the compost pile, the garden is done for the season.  I have once again grown a stellar crop of pig weed, quack grass, thistle and creeping charlie, in addition to some tasty vegetables.  I can only try to imagine how if feels to be a farmer who grows food on a large scale...bins and truckloads full of goodness.  My suggestion of the day:  kiss a farmer and say thanks for all the food we take for granted will always be there for us.