Oh the horror! This was and is (in my memory anyway), a golden beet.
I had lovingly swaddled this beet in foil and nestled it with its other vegetable compatriots in my refrigerator’s crisper drawer.
And that’s where it stayed for days.
More like weeks.
Maybe since late June?
In my mind, I had just roasted that lovely bunch of golden beets. But now that I think about it, there was that month-long heat wave where I never turned on my oven…
At least I ate the greens. I sautéed them with a little olive oil, crushed garlic, salt and pepper.
Still, anyone who reads this blog (hi Mom and Dad!) knows how I feel about food waste. I try to practice what I preach and then something like this happens.
I failed that beet. And the farmer that grew it. And myself.
I must repent.
First, I will eat this beet as penance.*
Second, I will do a better job of labeling food items with the date and contents, particularly anything that is obscured by a wrapper or packaging. All it takes is some tape and a Sharpie marker.
Finally, I will keep an inventory of the items in my fridge and freezer. I used to do this and it fell by the wayside. It’s an easy way to always know what you have available, and reduces duplicate purchasing at the grocery store. I may even take this one step further and create a Google doc so I can share this with my husband, the Naked Fowl.
I’m optimistic that following my own advice will avert any future vegetable degradation in my kitchen. I am learning from my mistakes and moving on.
And as excited as I am to have potentially cultivated a new antibiotic in my crisper drawer, in the future I will keep my mold-growing activity confined to a terrarium.
*Just kidding! I do not advocate eating moldy food, unless it’s cheese of course.
LOL. I buy lots of food with the goal of meal prepping for the work week…sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve had my share of limp yellowing kale and moldy tomatoes hanging out in my fridge. I have juiced the kale anyway though….LOL.