Select a colorful palette of beets to satisfy the palate

(A rainbow of beets surrounds this simple cucumber salad)

I love playing with food, especially when summer's bounty of produce produces a palette of colors that is pure inspiration.

Take beets, for example, a vegetable I admit I never ate as a kid. Now, just try and stop me from eating them! It wasn't until I started gardening on my own some 30 years ago that I learned to appreciate the flavor of a freshly pulled beet.

I have three kinds of beets growing in the garden that are just now ready to pull: the Bietola da Orto Tonda di Chioggia, which is a vibrant shade of magenta with white concentric circles; the old standby, Detroit Red, which is an intense burgundy red; and golden beets, which are a bit of golden sunshine on the plate. I'm not sure, if blindfolded, I could tell the difference in taste with these various beets, but sometimes you taste with the eye first, so it really doesn't matter. They are fresh and good, and taste like only a root vegetable can — of the earth and from the earth.

I steamed the beets for the beautiful salad you see pictured above, complemented by the first cucumber of the season and lots of fresh greens.
The dressing is a simple mix of olive oil and red wine vinegar with plain yogurt added in. I think of the yogurt as the ubiquitous white paint I use to soften acrylic paints and extend their use.
I mixed the beets in three separate bowls to keep their respective colors intact.
The result was a creamy, colorful display of tender marinated beets — it was almost like cooking with paints!

Multicolored Marinated Beet Salad with Cucumbers

1. 6 fresh beets, 2 each of bi-color, red and yellow (any color will do, but go for a variety to produce a colorful effect)
2. 1 small red onion, sliced into thin rounds
3. 1 cucumber
4. Fresh greens
5. Olive oil
6. Red wine vinegar
7. Tamari
8. Fresh dill, basil and parsley
9. Plain yogurt (organic is best)
10. Salt and pepper, to taste

For the beets:

• Steam the beets until fork-tender. When cool enough to handle, peel under running cold water.
• If using different colored beets, keep them in separate bowls to retain their glorious shades.
• Slice into thin circles and place them in a bowl with some of the onion rounds.
• Sprinkle with a little olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. Mince the dill and chop the parsley. Rip a little basil and mix it all together.
• Add a couple tablespoons of yogurt to the beets, more if they are the same color, until you get the desired consistency. Let sit in the fridge for a few hours for the colors to fully develop.
  

For the cucumber salad:

• Wash the cucumber and peel away some of the peel, or not.
• Run a fork down the cucumber to score it; then slice into rounds.
• Place the rounds in a bowl and sprinkle with olive oil, red wine vinegar and a splash of Tamari. Season with salt, pepper and the same fresh herbs used in the beets.

• Position some baby greens on a plate. Arrange some of the cucumber salad in the middle and place the three different beet salads around it.

This beautiful, fresh salad is as appealing to the palate as it is to the eye.
Even better, it's good for you, as beets are packed with vitamins and nutrients.