Need something to do with extra beet greens? Did you know that you can eat beet greens? The simplest thing you can do with them is to add them to a sweet tossed salad. I’ve included our recipe for strawberry salad dressing since strawberries are usually coming on in spring when the beet greens shoot up! 
What to do with the leaves and stems of beets?
Beet leaves and stems can be eaten raw in:
- salads
- smoothies
- charcuterie boards
- spring rolls
- as a topping for curry
Beet greens and stems can sautéed, stewed, or baked in:
- soups
- casseroles
- omelets
- stir fry
Tender vs. Mature Beet Greens
If you buy beets at the store, looks for the bunches with the largest leaves so that you can get the most for your dollar. Most of these leaves will be large and a little tougher than the younger, smaller leaves found in the center of the bunch.
To Use the larger leaves:
- When you get home, slice the greens away from the beets right away.
- Rinse them and pat them dry, or run them through a salad spinner.
- Cook them up that night, or store them in the fridge for up to a week.
These larger leaves are best suited to cooked dishes.
To Use the Tender, Smaller Leaves:
- If you grow beets, you can follow the same practice with those that are fully ripe and have larger leaves. Reserve any smaller leaves to eat raw.
- It sometimes happens that too many beet seeds are planted in one hole, and they need to be thinned out. Use those baby beet greens, for raw dishes like smoothies and salads.
- You may also use very small, immature beets in raw dishes. Slice them thinly and toss them into a salad like you would a cucumber or tomato.
Beets are simply so beautiful. Even the leaves are lovely, with red veins running through their sleek foliage.
Strawberries, Foraged Plants & More for the Salad
You can use regular or Alpine strawberry fruit in this recipe.
I grow those smaller Alpine strawberries, so I simply harvest them, wash them off, and add them in whole. If you have larger berries, cut them into medium sized chunks and add them to your beet greens.
Add foraged plants from your backyard to the salad, if you have some. Some suggestions are:
- young dandelion greens
- young violet leaves
- violet flowers
- chickweed
- young dead nettle blooms
- purslane
Harvesting weeds for food or medicine is called foraging. It’s very important to be sure that the plants you forage are safe, and that you’re harvesting them properly.
<<–Click here to get started foraging–>>
Finishing Touches
The last thing to add before the dressing is a head of loose leaf lettuce like Buttercrunch or Freckles if you’d like some color. Toss them all together gently so as not to smoosh the strawberries and then make the dressing.
You can also add other fruits like:
- orange slices (our favorite!)
- raisins
- Craisins
- pumpkin seeds
- sunflower seeds
- pine nuts
- feta cheese
Strawberry Salad Dressing
Strawberry Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. Organic extra virgin olive oil OR favorite light salad oil
- 1 Cup Fresh strawberries
- 1/4 tsp. Sea salt
- 2 Tbsp. Raw honey, or to taste
- 1-2 Dashes Balsamic vinegar
- 1 Dash Nutmeg
Instructions
- Put the strawberries into a blender and blend until liquefied.
- Add rest of ingredients and blend on low to medium.
- Taste and tweak - it's salad dressing.
- Don't let your kids dish their own because there won't be enough to go around after the first child. Yeah, it's that good.
Notes
For more information on growing a food garden, please consider The Gardening Notebook featured below. It is a great organizational resource, as well as a very educational one. The Notebook profiles many common veggies and how to grow them. It also gives you space to take notes and make plans. This is what I use for my garden every year.
This really sounds yummy! Must try this!
Let me know if you improve on it, Rachelle!
Delicious! We had the dressing on a big ole pile of greens for lunch today! 🙂
So glad you liked it!! It feels sinful but its really so good for you.
Sounds absolutely delicious. Strawberries are one of my favorite fruits and this is such an unique recipe. One I need to keep. Come and share your recipe on Real Food Fridays Blop Hop that is every week from Thursday evening to Monday at noon. Would be glad to have you. Visiting from Wildcrafting Wednesday Blog Hop!
I have Real Food Fridays on my pinterest hop board, Marla – I love that hop! I always learn a ton. Now, if my real mom Friday morning doesn’t occur, I just might be able to link up. Thank you for the compliment of the invite! BTW, the dressing is divine. Like from heaven. So, I can’t claim I thought of it but I sure do like eating it. AND, it is practically medicine so we should all eat a lot of it. 🙂
This sounds so great. It was a huge hit when I shared it yesterday.
Thanks, lady!
This looks delicious! I just started a new series called Eating Inside the Box it would be awesome if you would share this with us! Please linkup any other recipes to any fruit/veggie category you’d like!
https://www.cultivatenourishing.com/strawberries/
Enjoy the Harvest!
Lindsey
Thanks so much, Lindsey!! I linked up and was happy to do so. Jess shared your social media pages today on HBN and I hope you wake up to lots of love!
All I can say is yummmmm! And next year I’m growing strawberries. Thanks so much for sharing at Simple Lives Thursday. Hope to see you again this week.
What a great idea to pair strawberries with beet greens! I hardly use beet greens as I don’t have any recipe that I like. However, this might be the one, though.
I hope so! It’s delicious!