Fancy a pink béchamel? Well, of course you do! This Beetroot Béchamel is amazing.

In fact, I may be a tad hooked. I know it may sound like a strange combination but it really works, think of the possibilities!

I had a recipe tester for this one who adapted it and will post her version: meet Jane from Why is there Air. Hers comes in a lighter shade of pink as she uses cooked beetroot. I'm sticking to my guns and using raw as I love the bright colour of mine: coral pink, what's not to like (and this is a big fan of the colour red talking).

I used a Living Synergy Nut Milk Bag for this. In the UK you can buy them from Lesley from Me and my Thermie (£11.50 including P&P). It rinses and washes really well, to be perfectly honest I wouldn't use it otherwise. I hate fiddly things. If you don't have a nut milk bag don't panic, either use a fine sieve or don't strain it at all!

Now, you don't need a Thermomix for this, you can use a powerful blender to make the beetroot milk and just make the béchamel the way you would make your béchamel usually. But then again the Thermomix makes it smooth as velvet with no lumps, something I never managed pre-Thermie, so basically I am giving you the perfect excuse to buy one (for more excuses just see here).

The next recipe I will post will be a Seafood Lasagna using this Beetroot Béchamel so make sure you come back to check it out. It is amazing!

Serving suggestions:

• Fantastic with fresh tuna fillets
• In individual oven-proof bowls, topped with parmesan cheese (or cheese of your choice) and grilled until golden
• With poached eggs
• With chicken as a sauce

Beetroot Béchamel
Shopping list

- Approx. 150-200 g raw beetroot, peeled and quartered, the more you add the more the beetroot flavour will come across

- 500 g milk, both whole and skimmed work

- 15 extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 50 g unsalted butter
- 50 g plain flour
- 1 tsp salt
- Black pepper (mill)
- Pinch of grated nutmeg

Method

1. Chop the raw beetroot: 10 seconds, speed 7

2. Add 500 g milk: 2 min speed 10, strain well with a nut milk bag over a big bowl. Et voilà you have beetroot milk (have a taste it's actually surprisingly delicious). Now, let's make the béchamel.

3. Quickly rinse the bowl and add 15 g EVOO + 50 g unsalted butter: 1 min, 100º, speed 2.

4. Add 50 g plain flour: 2 minutes, 100º, speed 1.

5. Add 1 tsp sea salt + a few twists of black pepper + a pinch of nutmeg to the reserved beetroot milk then add to the bowl: 5 seconds, speed 7 followed by 8 minutes, 100º, speed 4.

With seared fresh tuna and a mixed salad: salad leaves, tomatoes, white asparagus and olives.

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