Beets and Sweets

2 roasted sweet potatoes w skin (chop into 1 inch pieces, spray w pam and cook at 425F for ~25min)

1 package of precooked beets chopped into 1 inch pieces (they’re amazing if you don’t want the mess of roasting your own beets. If you want to roast your own, follow the same directions as the sweet potatoes above but skin them and they’ll likely need more time in the oven, cook until fork tender).

¼ cup orange juice – I have used alcoholic cider in a pinch and it was also delicious

2 tbsp brown sugar or honey*

1/2-full can of chickpeas (~400mL), drained and rinsed.

¼ cup roasted sunflower seeds

¼ cup goat cheese for topping

Balsamic glaze for topping if you want! (So good. I put that @!$# on everything)

1) Heat a large frying pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Add brown sugar and OJ and mix. Let it come to a boil for a minute or two so it thickens.

2) Add the cooked beets and stir to coat. Cook until most liquid is gone – watch this somewhat closely. The sugar can burn really quickly. This is a flavour I have learned to love as I have a very short attention span.

3) Mix cooked sweet potatoes, candied beets, chickpeas and sunflower seeds. Save the goat cheese and balsamic glaze for right before eating. This salad is good warm or cold, so it’s great for leftovers. I like it warm because the goat cheese melts… oh ya…

4) Enjoy :)

*Choose based on flavour preference. Sugar is sugar. There may be some VERY minute benefits to honey over refined brown sugar, but really, sugar is sugar. If you’re worried about the sugar, know that there is a significant amount of fibre in this recipe which will reduce the impact that the simple sugar from honey or brown sugar will have. Fibre is a complex molecule that gets in the way and makes it more difficult for the simple sugars to be absorbed, preventing a blood sugar spike.

For 1/4 of the recipe:

Energy: 321kcal

Protein: 10g

Fat: 8g

CHO: 53g

Fibre: 9g (35% DRI)