BEETROOT BEAN DIP
Take a Dip Archives: Season 2, Episode 1
I’ve put all the recipes from TAKE A DIP SEASON 2 together too, and this is the first one. We’re starting with - YOU GUESSED IT - another beautiful pink dip…
As you may have already noticed, I am just a little bit obsessed with beetroot. And, when it comes to creating dips, soups, pasta sauces and more, I feel this beautiful pink colour simply cannot be beaten. We made my beetroot hummus in the first series of Take a Dip. So, I felt it only right to start with Season 2 with a slightly tweaked version. Well, I say tweaked, really its because we are using beans instead of chickpeas. But it does make a bit of a difference.
I find that blending beans, as opposed to chickpeas, can often result in a slightly more subtle flavour, and smoother texture. The idea here was to also use the leftovers of this dip as a pink pasta sauce - and it worked wonderfully! Tastes great, looks great, what’s not to love? Well, I guess unless you’re a beetroot hater that is…
So, if you give it a go, please enjoy! And definitely try out the leftover pasta situation too. My top tip would be to scatter over some feta, dill, and pine nuts for an seriously sumptuous flavour combination.
INGREDIENTS (serves 4)
3 beetroot
1 garlic bulb
400g butter beans (or cannellini)
4 tbsp tahini
1 lemon
1 tbsp cumin
2-3 ice cubes
Handful fresh dill
Handful toasted nuts / seeds (pick your favourite!)
Extra virgin olive oil, salt & pepper
METHOD
Cover the fresh beets in foil, season with salt + splash of oil. Slice the top of a garlic bulb, season with salt & splash of oil. Roast with the beets at 190 for 30-40 minutes, or until softened. Remove the beets + garlic from the foil, allowing to cool. Peel + chop the beets.
To a food processor or high speed blender, add the beans, beets, roasted garlic, tahini, cumin & lemon juice, then blend.
While it's running, stream in the olive oil & add the ice cubes. Blend for 5-10 mins, or until super smooth.
Get into a bowl, top with fresh dill, a swirl of olive oil & toasted nuts. Serve with dipper of choice & enjoy!
This dip was inspired by two things. Three actually. First, I was spending the summer at my best mate’s house, and his mum had a lovely little vegetable patch at the bottom of her garden. Naturally, I was VERY drawn to these beautiful looking beetroots. The idea that I could stroll down, harvest my own beetroot, and cook with them was something I couldn’t turn down. It’s rare to be able to connect with your ingredients like this, and I find it ALWAYS makes the end result all the more tastier.
Second, it was the summer of Barbie, so I had seen plenty of pink pastas, and barbie related bits doing the rounds on social media. So I reckoned this would be a fun way to tie into things.
And third, well of course I had to pay homage to the OG beetroot hummus I’d made at the start of Take a Dip Season 1. So, whether you use beans like in this recipe, or chickpeas, it’s delicious, nutritious, and looks absolutely stunning too - so enjoy!
Alfie x