ChefSteps Beet Risotto

👉 For this vibrant, healthy take on the Italian staple, we use the whole dang beet to create a ruby-red-and-emerald dish with fresh, bright flavors and a remarkable creamy texture that utterly belies its vegan status. (Vegan, that is, unless you choose to top with some fresh parmesan—and, oh, we do.) Though it’s not necessary to use beet juice as cooking liquid (you can substitute any portion of stock or water instead), we love how the super-absorbent short-grain rice soaks up the earthy beet flavor and turns the rice an eye-popping magenta. And we particularly love how satisfied we feel when we use every part of the vegetable to get the job done. Visit for more recipes, techniques and cooking classes.