Beetroot dips are always a winner because in addition to the nutritional goodness they give they also provide a very pretty pop of colour on your table. This recipe is an alternative to hummus, using butterbeans which can be a bit more gentle on the digestion than chickpeas. Aside from that change the recipe is very similar to hummus and can be used in all the same ways: as a dip, a spread, a base or a topping. The sweet earthiness of the beetroot works well here with the creaminess from the beans and the burst of lemon and garlic which cuts through. It’s packed with nutritional goodness and is a lovely way to make beetroot (the super food of all super foods) the star of the show. You can make this with pre-packed cooked beetroot at a push (not pickled) but fresh is so much more flavoursome and colourful.
Ingredients:
Serves 4 - 6
1 x 400g tin butter beans drained and rinsed
250g diced, freshly cooked beetroot *
1 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
1 clove of garlic (2 if you like a stronger garlic kick)
Pinch of ground cumin
Half tsp sea salt
To make:
Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and blitz until smooth.
*For perfectly cooked beetroot, top and tail them (leave the skin on), cover them in boiling water and simmer for approximately 40-50 mins until a knife can go through easily leaving just a bit of bite. Drain and cover with cold water as you peel away the skin- it will slide off smoothly (you might want to wear disposable gloves). Leave them to cool before using in the above recipe.
