By Adrienne Smith

Nextdoorganics member Nikki, and blogger behind The Petite Beet, has become an expert at cooking seasonally.

Two years ago, Nikki moved to Greenpoint, Brooklyn from Manhattan. She was finding it difficult to get preservative-free, fresh food in her nearby grocery store. Nikki decided to sign up for our weekly packages of organic, local vegetables.

The switch helped Nikki understand and control where her food came from, and support local farms. Her food blog The Petite Beet reflects this switch. Each recipe is chock full of vegetables and flavor, from eggs florentine with kale - in season all winter - to hearty vegetarian shepherd’s pie.

We spoke with Nikki about her Nextdoorganics membership, her blog and her passion for cooking.

And added bonus, Nikki has shared her recipe for Golden Beet Ravioli. Hint: she used wonton wrappers!

Sign up for Nextdoorganics here, to get weekly packages of fresh and local produce.

Getting To Know Nikki from The Petite Beet

What’s your favorite part of receiving the weekly packages?

My favorite part of getting my weekly package is the variety of items! Before signing up with Nextdoorganics, I never would have walked into a grocery store and bought a rutabaga. But now I love them!

What made you start your blog?

I find (for myself anyway) that it’s really easy to get lost in your day job and forget to take the time to learn and grow outside of that. I’ve always loved cooking, but wanted to be better at it. So I figured I’d start a little blog cooking with my CSA ingredients I got every week to try and get more experienced in the kitchen.

Have you always loved to cook?

Yes! I come from a family of cooks - my little sister is a food stylist and pastry chef in Rhode Island, and my older sister is an incredible home cook. Some of my favorite memories are of us just sitting at the table enjoying meals we’ve made together. Individually, my Mom and Dad also both have a knack for whipping up weird but delicious concoctions from whatever they have on hand and my grandparents have always been wonderful about sharing the tradition of enjoying a home cooked meal as a family. I’ve definitely grown to love cooking even more over the past few years.

Has Nextdoorganics changed your cooking style? How?

Yes, definitely! Aside from getting to know many new ingredients, it has also inspired me to step out of my comfort zone and be more creative with the recipes I choose and develop. I’ve also expanded my knowledge of spices and how to use them. So I guess it’s made me more adventurous in the kitchen. I am also now making a conscious effort to eat and cook with seasonal produce - whether it’s from my weekly selection or otherwise.

What has been your favorite part about running The Petite Beet?

Cooking is very therapeutic for me, so it’s been a nice way to end the day. My favorite thing might be cooking with friends – it’s fun to brainstorm what we can make with the weekly items. It’s also pretty cool to see how many different countries click on my blog each week. I definitely didn’t think anyone in Guam would be looking at my recipes when I first started!

What have been your biggest challenges with maintaining a blog?

Some weeks it’s hard to find the time to cook and blog a meal. But that supports my whole plan of forcing myself to make time outside of work hours! Other than that, sometimes it’s hard to think of new interesting recipes when a lot of the same vegetables are in season for an extended period of time (cabbages, potatoes, etc) But in a way it has made me think differently when planning meals. I look at food in a whole new way now!

Recipes From The Petite Beet

Nikki’s Golden Beet Ravioli With Brown Butter

There is a little restaurant in Brooklyn called Testo that I love to go to with friends. Every time we go, one of us orders the beet ravioli- it’s so delicious and has such a nice light earthy taste to it. I decided to make it at home with some golden beets that I had. I took a shortcut with the pasta and used wonton wrappers, but you can make your own dough if you have the extra time! For the sauce I just made a simple brown butter as I didn’t want the sauce to outshine the beet flavor. They came out great! I think Testo would have been proud.

Ingredients:

1 package wonton wrappers
3 golden beets, peeled and quartered
4 garlic cloves
1/3 cup walnuts
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
Parmesan cheese, for serving
Fresh parsley (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the beets and garlic on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and roast for 25 minutes or until fork tender. Add the walnuts to the pan for the last 5 minutes.

Place the beets, garlic, walnuts, and ricotta in a food processor. Blend until smooth then salt and pepper, to taste. To make the raviolis, wet the perimeter of two pasta wrappers and add a spoonful of the beet mixture to the center. Place the second wrapper on top and press the edges together until sealed all the way around. Repeat until you have the desired amount of raviolis. I cut my wrappers into circles with my pasta trimmer, but you can leave them square or simply fold in half for a triangle shape!

Place the raviolis in a pot of boiling salted water. I always add a drizzle of olive oil to my water to help prevent the pasta from sticking together. Boil for about 4 minutes. In the meantime, heat 4 tablespoons of butter in a pan over medium high heat, cooking until the butter begins to turn golden brown and has a nutty fragrance. Plate the raviolis, and top with the browned butter, Parmesan cheese, and fresh parsley.

Not in the mood for pasta? Try Nikki’s vegetarian shepherd’s pie with sweet potato & rutabaga mash or her eggs florentine with kale