Beetloaf- Can it be done? SHOULD it be done?

For a long time now I have had an urge to take one of my favorite dirt-lurkers, the beet, and make a make a vegetarian meatloaf. Not so much vegetarian meatloaf, really, but more a vegetable in loaf form.

Here's what I am thinking...

Make a pot of borscht... either red or golden and add sour cream and gelatin. Chill overnight, and then slice with an electric knife. Serve in loaf form with horseradish sauce.

Would this work? SHOULD this work?

My wife, when we were engaged, threatened to put it in the vows that I would never insist she try my beetloaf. I think its a great idea. She turns green and insists I stop talking.

Not too sure about that one Creamy, but then again, I don't like beets in the first place.

I like beets, especially in their pickled/spicy state...

I took a look in my "Flavor Bible" and these are the flavors that go best with Beets:

Butter
Cheese (goat / parmesan / roquefort)
Lemon
Dijon Mustard
Olive Oil
Orange juice/zest
Pepper black/white
Salt
Shallots
Tarragon
Vinegar (balsamic)
Walnuts/oil


From the above I'd use the following (I'm mediterranean!

Beets + EVOO + Lemon + Parsley + Cheese (goat/soft + parmesan/hard) + shallots + onions + garlic + mustard

mix with eggs (binder) + tasty bread crumbs (as filler. I wouldn't use squishy white bread!) + cooked rice (also filler/binder) + maybe Tofu? (not a fan)

It sounds challenging.

Have fun with your experiment!

I'm kinda with 'Banger on this one, but don't let that stop you from giving it a try.

All I can think of is:

"Meatloaf, beetloaf, double schmeatloaf, I hate Meatloaf!" from A Christmas Story...

Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica.
-Dwight Schrute

Beets are a dish best served cold. Like Coleslaw
-Dwight Schrute

You must do this.

And film yourself eating it!

FWIW I dislike pickled beets, and am not a fan of beets in most forms, but this sounds interesting.

Homercidal said:

You must do this.

And film yourself eating it!

Click to expand...

Yes and yes!

Do it! Do it! Do it! Do it!

Just the thread title alone made my stomach turn. But then again, I just can't make myself like beets. My wife has tried a number of times in different preparations and nothing has worked.

Good luck with it!

Ah yes,

As an addendum to my post above, I'd also use lightly steamed/boiled potatoes in cubes in the mix so as to reduce the "beetiness/earthiness" of the beets...

And, yes, wrapping the whole thing in bacon or chicken skin and crisped on a rotisserie would make it so much better!

My wifes ukranian family makes borscht all the time. I like beets and love my wife but being forced to eat borscht should be grounds for divorce.

CreamyGoodness said:

For a long time now I have had an urge to take one of my favorite dirt-lurkers, the beet, and make a make a vegetarian meatloaf. Not so much vegetarian meatloaf, really, but more a vegetable in loaf form.

Here's what I am thinking...

Make a pot of borscht... either red or golden and add sour cream and gelatin. Chill overnight, and then slice with an electric knife. Serve in loaf form with horseradish sauce.

Would this work? SHOULD this work?

My wife, when we were engaged, threatened to put it in the vows that I would never insist she try my beetloaf. I think its a great idea. She turns green and insists I stop talking.

Click to expand...

Hhhhhmmmm...
Sort of a beet aspic? Take it to the next level Creamy, add some mashed beets & maybe rutabegas, add some chunks of beet, rutabega & potatoes, maybe some pearled barley & celery. The end product would look a little like head cheese I think. The chunks should make it seem a bit more filling & might give it some eye appeal. What about a sort of crust on top? Not sure if the crust thing would work or not, but it's worth exploring I think.

Maybe with an increase of solid content & a good binding agent, you could actually bake it like a meatloaf & serve it hot, though I'm not sure what vegans use for binding agents. I'm thinking egg & breadcrumbs or flour to thicken & bind; maybe some carageenan? Maybe breadcrumbs or flaked grains for an outer crust? Just tossing some ideas out there.
Regards, GF.

EDIT: Had another thought Creamy, what if you added some oatmeal to the mix like they do with haggis? Oats are nice & glutinous, will help firm up the mix & will add a mild flavour as well as texture. You could end up with a vegetarian version of haggis. I'd try it!
Regards, GF.

Creamy - I too enjoy the pickled beets, however, the idea of a beetloaf just sounds...well...wrong. Having said that, I would be up for at least tasting it. If you do go ahead with this idea, please provide pictures of the finished product. All that purple-ish goodness has got to make a nice visual statement.

With a side of steamed & creamed cauliflower!

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Creamy, you ain't right.

Not sure about a gelatinous beetloaf, but I've made a beet burger before. They were good, but I hate dealing with fresh beets. They are so messy and turn everything purple. I do love beets, but I usually buy canned for simplicities sake.

So Creamy, have you tried this beetloaf yet?
Regards, GF.

This sounds like a must try.

Do a google image search for beetloaf......

Not yet... still talking the wife into it

I have seen Beet Sliders so this aint to far out there. They were even poched in BEER!

It kind of sounds like all you want to make is a beet terrine. I'd say skip making the borscht unless this is a way to make use of leftovers.

You can just skip this if you know how to make a terrine.


Instead just roast the beets, thinly slice

Then layer in a loaf pan line with plastic wrap. You can alternate other things in the layers, like sour cream or maybe pickled onions.

Once you get to the top fold the plastic wrap over the top, place in fridge, and weight with a couple heavy cans or a brick for a few days.

Remove, slice, eat.

Xpertskir said:

It kind of sounds like all you want to make is a beet terrine. I'd say skip making the borscht unless this is a way to make use of leftovers.

Click to expand...

Terrine is lacking the creepy gelatinous aspect we expect from a CreamyGoodness YouTube tasting video. If the beetloaf doesn't jiggle, his wife's commentary won't have as much material. So if Creamy's taking votes, I'm voting aspic. Again. Vote early and vote often! Beetloaf aspic 2013!

That is looking tasty! Looks like German "sulze," sans meat. Most is like head cheese, but some is more like a still life-looking lunch, under gelatin that has a vinegary flavour.
http://www.google.com/search?q=sulz...7LaGCiwLDnoGADw&ved=0CDwQsAQ&biw=1383&bih=787

This got me to thinking. What if you used beet juice/beet stock instead of water to make the gelatin? Just a thoughtRegards, GF.

If you try your "Beet Loaf" you must wash it down with a glass of Beet Wine I haven't tasted it myself but if you love beets that much, why not?

Beet wine is very good

Speaking of veggie wines, Goofy, I think you asked about the color of the carrot wine before and I never responded. I would say it is an orangy brown. I'm honestly not sure, any longer, if I really like it.... but its a nice change.