The beet is the most intense of vegetables. The radish, admittedly, is more feverish, but the fire of the radish is a cold fire, the fire of discontent, not of passion. Tomatoes are lusty enough, yet there runs through tomatoes an undercurrent of frivolity.
Beets are deadly serious.
I like beets best when they've been roasted, as that process really intensifies their sweet flavor. And, FYI, my webmaster, Daniel, loves beets raw and in a salad. Peel and grate them first. Culinarily Speaking Buy firm, fresh-looking beets with smooth skin and a globular shape, and preferably with their greens attached. Size and shape of beets are not important, but avoid deep scars or rings of scars around the neck, which indicate a beet has been in the ground too long and might be tough.