Beetroot is having its moment in the sun again with its glorious pinkness and deep earthy flavour. You just can’t move without bumping into a recipe using beetroot. This one from the August 2017 Waitrose magazine is perfect for a summer’s day; it’s light, healthy and pink! I did adapt the recipe slightly by adding very generously heaped teaspoons of the coriander and cumin. I also added 2 teaspoons of pomegranate molasses and a tablespoon of lemon juice, just to liven up the flavour of the beetroot. I used blue cheese when building up the flatbread which worked really well, but goat’s cheese or feta would also do the job!  You can find the original recipe below.

Ingredients

400g can chick peas, drained
220g beetroot, peeled and coarsely grated
100g walnut pieces
25g pack flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
25g pack mint, roughly chopped
½ small red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190˚C, gas mark 5. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Put all the ingredients except the oil in a food processor. Season and pulse until everything is finely chopped and beginning to clump together.

2. Take tablespoons of the mixture to shape into about 20-24 small patties. Space them out on the lined baking sheet, brush lightly with oil and bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned. Leave to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before taking them off with a spatula. Serve on their own or with Greek yogurt or hummus, fresh coriander, shredded lettuce, cheese, sliced tomatoes and flatbreads or pitta, if liked.