Two Tubers Beetroots and Beet Greens

Wash beetroots and greens well, scrubbing beetroots. Remove beetroots from the greens and put aside. Working a handful at a time, pile up the beet greens, cut the stalks off, and put the leaves aside while chopping the stalks into 1 to 2 cm pieces. Peel and thinly slice a clove of garlic. Place the garlic in a frying pan with the beet stalks and 1 tbs oil over low heat. While the beet stalks cook, lay 5 or 6 of the leaves onto one another, roll up and slice at 1 cm intervals. Repeat until all of the leaves are sliced. Any small leaves can be left intact.

Stir the stalks at intervals to ensure even cooking. Once they have softened and the liquid in the pan has evaporated, add the beet leaves a few handfuls at a time, stirring until wilted. Once there is more room in the pan, add another couple of handfuls of beet leaves, until all beet leaves are in the pan. Cook the leaves until there is no moisture in the bottom of the pan. Add celery seed, onion powder, salt and pepper and stir through. Taste and adjust seasonings as required. 

While the leaves are cooking, prepare the beetroots. Peel and finely slice the remaining clove of garlic. Top and tail each beetroot, cleaning up the stalk end and trimming the root back to the bulb. Leave the skin on.   Place the beetroot on a sheet of foil, top it with the sliced garlic, and drizzle it with a tbsp of oil. Fold the foil to make a tight parcel. Place this parcel in a 180-degree oven for 30 minutes. Take out and test the beetroot with a knife. You want them to be still firm but not hard. You should be able to pierce with a fine knife but have some resistance. If too hard, cook for another 15 minutes and test again.

Both the beetroots and greens can be served as a side dish. They can also be pickled or made into a delicious frittata.