When does a parent rejoice? When their children surpass their own abilities. As a mother, I know that there is nothing greater than understanding that some things you taught your children have been internalized and  improved upon by them. I have two beautiful grown-up, and very much self-made daughters. Both of them saw me cooking and baking, but neither really paid too much attention to the process. Was I disappointed? Of course, not! They had their own paths. One became a very good (judging by published works, and references by teachers and clients) psychologist, and the other at 25 is flying around the world to teach people something I have very hard time understanding!

דַּיֵּנוּ! That would have been enough. However, another joy was coming my way – my girls began to bake and to cook. My eldest today makes much better cakes than  I ever did. And, my youngest is, basically, ready to publish her own vegan cookbook. As the Talmud says, even the Almighty loves when His children – Jewish people – “defeat” Him. “My children have defeated Me, My children have eternalized Me,” (Baba Metzia 59b).

How much more I was happy, when I asked my daughter for a culinary advice –  what does she do with the beet greens?

I love beets, but being from Russia, where the culture of eating greens was not so widespread on the majority of its territory (notable exception, is of course, Caucasus, where the shashlik was always accompanied by a bunch of salads, parsley, cilantro, tarragon just washed and eaten together with the meat), I never really thought about eating the beet greens. However, I knew that my daughter does it all the time. So, at her advice, after I bought some beautiful organic rainbow beets, I’ve sauteed some chopped onion, some chopped garlic with some marinaded roasted red peppers and some spices. I usually use basil, a bit of turmeric, za’atar, dried dill, a bit of Allepian pepper. Anything you like can be used, of course. Naturally, you add salt and pepper. In another pot I cooked some pasta. Now I love pasta, but I am trying to cut down on simple carbs, so I boiled some brown rice fettuccine. I, then combined the two , and got a delicious dish!

You are asking what did I do with the beets themselves? Again, at the advice of my daughter, I peeled them first, which I never do, sliced them, bathed them in the mix of olive oil, a bit of garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper, and roasted them at 420 F for about 20 minutes. Loved them!

This Shabbat and the start of the last month of the year, let’s think about the blessings we all got during this one. I, for sure, am going to thank Gd for the gifts he has given me in my daughters. Here’s to remembering the things that are most important in our lives. Shabbat Shalom!