These beet pesto bagel sandwiches are an easy, creamy and salty brunch or breakfast option that is vegetarian but twice as delicious than a regular egg sandwich (in my opinion :)) These bagels are inspired by a menu item at Milk and Honey, a delicious Chicago brunch spot that Nathan and I love to walk to. They have the best chai lattes in the city and we often share a bagel similar to this remake.
The main event is the beet pesto, which I recently learned about around a year ago while watching “Nadiya’s Time to Eat” on Netflix (a very soothing cooking show). She made beet pesto for an easy pasta dish, and I thought, “WOW! Why haven’t I tried this before??” It’s very tasty and provides a lot of brightness to any dish.
How to make beet pesto
If you have made regular pesto before, with basil, this isn’t much different at all. I simply swap roasted beets for the herbs. However, beets do need to roast in the oven for a while since they are very rooty, tough vegetables. If you buy them raw at the store like I do, be sure to give them a rinse, as they are typically pretty dirty. Slice off any rooty edges, and then dice them into quarters. I find that cutting them helps them roast quicker in the oven, but don’t feel the need to peel them. That is a huge time suck and won’t make much of a difference in this recipe.
Then just place them on a baking sheet and evenly space them out. 40 minutes is usually enough time to soften the beets, but test them to be sure. A knife should be able to easily penetrate a roasted beet, so if they still feel a bit hard, roast them for 5-10 more minutes.
Since they will be really hot when you remove them from the oven, let them cool for 10 minutes before moving on. In the food processor, I dumped in all the other pesto ingredients: grated Parmesan, olive oil, salt, red pepper flakes, pepper and pine nuts. Add in the beets, and pulse together until smooth. That’s it!
Make the bagel sandwiches
The rest is mostly common sense so I’ll keep this brief. I like to use both ricotta and mozzarella for these, since they are both creamy and not too salty. I also use Everything Bagels but again, use what pleases you. I usually smear beet pesto on one half of the bagel and ricotta on the other side. I drizzle a bit of honey on top of the ricotta, and stack on some cucumber, mozzarella and arugula. Then, I just put it together and slice in half. It is creamy, gooey, warm and just slightly sweet. Yum!
And that’s it! If you enjoy these beet pesto bagel sandwiches, try my Crockpot Philly Cheesesteaks with Carrot Mayo and Broccolini or my White Pizza with Prosciutto and Arugula.
Beet Pesto Bagel Sandwiches
Equipment
- Sheet pan
- Food processor
- toaster
Ingredients
Beet pesto
- 1 lb beets washed and roughly chopped
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan
- 4 tbsp pine nuts
- ¼ cup olive oil
- pinch of red pepper flakes
- pinch of salt
For serving
- 4 everything bagels (or bagels of your choice)
- ¼ cup ricotta cheese
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/4 cup cucumbers sliced thin
- 1 ball mozzarella sliced
- 1/2 cup arugula
Instructions
- To make the beet pesto, preheat the oven to 420°F. Wash and chop your beets roughly, cutting off any rooty edges. Place them on a baking sheet and drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Then space out the beets evenly and roast in the oven for 40 minutes. Then let them cool for at least 10 minutes.
- In a food processor, dump in the beets, pine nuts, Parmesan, red pepper flakes, olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pulse until the mixture becomes a smooth pesto. Add more salt and pepper if desired. If the pesto is too chunky, add a few more tablespoons of olive oil and pulse once more.
- Slice your bagels and toast them in a toaster if desired. Add a smear of beet pesto to one side, and a smear of ricotta cheese on the other half of each bagel. Drizzle some honey on top of the ricotta cheese, and top with sliced cucumber. Add arugula and a slice of mozzarella before putting both sides together. Slice in half to serve.
