Beet Pasta with Pistachio and Feta - The FoodOlic recipes (2024)

This vivid burgundy Beet Pasta is made with pesto or paste made of blended beet, feta, olive oil and pistachio. To add some texture, add crunchy arugula, crumbled feta, and pistachios to top it and give it a lovely contrasting colour! Sensational for the eyes and palate!

Beet Pasta is elegant but quite a different type of pasta, a spot-on dish to impress on Valentine’s Day. To keep it healthier, I’ve used a Kamut fusilli pasta, but any whole wheat or high-fibre type would do here; the ruby red paste will cover all traces of brown pasta. It can be served as a main dish or side and could also be eaten warm or cold.

Type of Pasta

I’ve made this beet pasta recipe with kamut fusilli, the ancestor of modern wheat, or should I say, it’s the way wheat would be today without our interference (no GMO, etc). First of all, kamut is a whole grain, also called Khorasan wheatand is a good source of essential minerals like selenium, zinc and manganese. Making it a much healthier version. If you want to know more details about this type of grain, check out this link!

Ruby Red Beet

As a beet enthusiast, I understand the challenge of their earthy flavour. Pairing them with salty goat cheese and crunchy pistachios works wonders in balancing out their heaviness, creating a harmonious dish. Moreover, their striking ruby-red hue makes them a perfect centrepiece for a romantic dinner. And let’s not forget their exceptional health benefits, including folates for reducing birth defect risks, regulating blood pressure, and boosting stamina. With their liver-detoxifying properties and ability to enhance antioxidant enzymes and white blood cell production, beets truly earn their status as a superfood.

Toppings

Most of the time, toppings are mostly decorative or not an integral part of the dish, let’s say. In this case, au contraire, it’s a mandatory part! You need the crunch and the extra salt from the toppings to make this dish balanced and enjoyable texture-wise. The crunchy arugula or rocket salad on top is crunchy, but with this herby, almost spicy touch to it, it makes everything so much more dynamic! The feta and pistachio, being already in the beet pesto, are just to enhance the flavour and add extra texture to the dish.

Variations

You could replace the feta with cream cheese or fresh goat cheese; they will all balance the earthiness of the beets. As for the arugula (rocket), you could also replace it with kale chips or baby spinach leaves.

Other Romantic Dish Ideas

• VALENTINE’S DAY SALAD
• BEETROOT AND GOAT CHEESE MINI QUICHES
• VALENTINE’S PIZZA POCKETS

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