I got some fresh local beets this past week, and while beets are definitely one of my favorite salad toppings, I hardly ever buy them at the store for myself. I'm not entirely sure why I don't either. I've used them to make some pretty awesome things in the past couple of years, like this Beet Pesto. Or with being added to another salad that I paired with my Skinny Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette.

These oven roasted beets have to be one of the most simple, easy to do, and flavorful things you can make. They take just an hour to roast and just two ingredients to make. Plus, the prep work is minimal. Giving you an hour to go about your business doing whatever else you need or want. What better is that these roasted beets can be made ahead of time as part of a weekly meal prep.

The trick to this fool proof way of roasting your beets is as simple as it comes. A little bit of olive oil and a sealed foil pack to keep the beets nice and tender during the cooking process. No drying out here!

The antioxidants in the beets are what give them their gorgeous color while also offering protection against coronary artery disease and stroke. They can help to lower cholesterol levels within the body, and have anti-aging effects to boot. Don't just use the beet root though! You can also eat the greens on top too. One of my favorite ways to use up beet root greens is to incorporate them into pesto. You can't really go wrong with that option.

Talking about beets just makes me want to bust out into song. Oh, yeah. You know the one I'm taking about. You'll have to excuse me while I totally jam out over here. "Just beat it, beat it, beat it, beat it. No one wants to be defeated! Ow!"

I enjoyed my beets over some fresh green leaf lettuce with reduced fat feta crumbles and a pesto vinaigrette for a perfectly fresh and seasonal salad at lunch today.

Roasted Beets
TheSkinnyFork.com

The Skinny:
Servings: 4 • Size: 1 Beet • Calories: 55.3 • Fat: 2.5 g • Saturated Fat: 0.4 • Carb: 7.8 g • Fiber: 2.3 g • Protein: 1.3 g • Sugar: 5.5 g • Sodium: 64 mg

Ingredients:
4 Medium Beets
2 Tsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut and remove the stems and roots from the beets after scrubbing them good and clean.

Discard or save the greens for another purpose. I love to make pesto with them!

Place the beets into a large sheet of heavy foil; topping with the 2 tsp. of olive oil.

Wrap the beets up in the foil to seal them inside and place the wrapped up beets onto a baking sheet.

Put the baking sheet into the oven for one hour.

Once done, remove the beets and check them for tenderness. They should be good and ready!

Allow them to cool enough to handle.

Once cool enough, carefully rub the skins off of the beets. The skin should just slip right off.

Slice or dice the beets up to enjoy however you want!