2. Turn it into a tartare
Vegetable tartares are populating appetizer lists this year, according to Gerry Ludwig, chef at Gordon Food Service, who presented a trends workshop at the National Restaurant Association Show this May. Chefs are cubing, chopping and mincing misshapen and bruised beets, carrots, zucchini and other plants, and presenting them much like a beef or lamb tartare. At New York City’s Little Park, chef Andrew Carmellini created a signature Beetroot Tartare, garnished with smoked-trout roe, rye and horseradish, that sells for $15—comparable to steak tartare—and has become a must-have dish through its prestige association.