Product Review: Aunt Nellie's Beets

Know what's hot right now in the food world? Beets. That's right, beets.
Perhaps like me you were fed beets as a kid, and hated them. But they're on the culinary upswing these days, with top chefs finding all sorts of ways to use them.
And truth be told, my tastes have grown up. I cook with beets myself now and then. So I agreed to receive a sample of Aunt Nellie's canned beets.
Even before I tasted them, I noticed that these come from Marion, NY, only about a half hour's drive from Rochester. So that was cool.
I got two samples, of simple canned beets and pickled beets. The former had a remarkably mild flavor, sweet but not cloying, and a firm texture.
The pickled beets were much closer to what I remember disliking as a kid. But as I said, my tastes have changed.
There is something both weird and intriguing about pickling a naturally sweet vegetable, especially one with as distinctive a flavor as beets. These had the same firm texture as the canned beets, but with a balance of sweet and vinegary and ... well, beety.
One nice thing about Aunt Nellie's beets is that they come packed in glass jars, so you don't get that canned aluminum taste, nor do you have to worry about the chemical linings that go into some metal cans. And while you can eat them straight up, Aunt Nellie's beets can also be used in many recipes, which you can find on their website or on your favorite recipe site.
Keep an eye out for Aunt Nellie's beets. Right now you can find them at Walmart, but I suspect you'll be seeing them on more store shelves in the near future.