Golden beetroot has been appearing in my veg box quite a lot recently. If you haven’t seen them before, they’re a very vibrant yellow and deliciously sweet in taste. Definitely something worth trying.
The colour is just so gorgeous and reminds me of a warm sunny day. It really lends itself to making a beautiful dip and the one I love is this hummus. There’s nothing like a big bowl of it glowing away in the middle of your table when you have guests.
Why choose golden beetroot?
This is just one of many examples in which choosing different fruit and vegetables can help improve the variety of those that are available to us going forward. If we continued to buy only the standard red beetroot, its likely that’s all we could get in future. I don’t know about you, but I’d prefer that didn’t happen.
Food Biodiversity – basically the variety of food – is essential to both the health of the planet and our own health. Diverse crops mean healthier, nutrient rich soils, which we need. And diverse diets mean a healthy, thriving gut microbiome that will help to keep us well.
It’s also great to grow things like this or other heirloom vegetables in your garden for the same reasons.
What are the health benefits?
This golden hummus is rich in nutrients, and in particular – beta carotene.
Beta carotene – an organic compound found in plants – has a distinct red-orange-yellow coloured pigment. Think of all the vegetables you know in those colours; you’ll also find beta carotene in them.
Beta carotene is converted to retinol (the active form of Vitamin A) in the liver so it can be utilised by the body. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin used for several important functions, including:
- Boosting vision and aiding general eye health
- Supporting neurological function
- Helping to reduce inflammation thanks to its role as an antioxidant and free radical scavenger
- Keeping the skin and mucus membranes healthy
- Supporting the Immune system
Serving suggestions
I love to serve this with some homemade sauerkraut on crackers, add a dollop to a Buddha bowl or even just eat it by the spoonful for a snack.
It’s definitely great to dip in veggies like carrot, cucumber and celery too.
I find golden beets have a much less earthy flavour than the red variety so if you’re not a beetroot lover you might be pleasantly surprised by this recipe. If you do adore those rich, umami and earthy flavours though… be sure to check out my miso fermented garlic recipe too.
What’s your favourite way to enjoy hummus? Let me know in the comments.
Golden beetroot hummus
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 300 g golden beetroot, peeled
- 150 g carrots, peeled
- 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 can chickpeas, drained
- ¼ cup tahini
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 3 tbsp olive oil + more for drizzling
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp cumin
- 1 tbsp parsley, chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (360 F)
- Chop the golden beetroot and carrot into 2cm (~¾ of an inch) chunks then add to a roasting dish. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 30 – 45 mins or until easily pierced with a knife
- Remove the veg from the oven then add to a blender along with all the remaining ingredients
- Blend until smooth scraping down the sides and blending again in need. This was about a minute or two of blending for me. If needed, you can drizzle in ½ to 1 tbsp of water to ensure the hummus is super smooth
- Just as you're ready to serve – add a good drizzle of olive oil over the top and a sprinkle of chopped parsley. Serve with crackers or chopped veg like carrots, cucumber, celery etc.
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