004 / 75 · Centerpieces with a twist
Beet and Dill Bean Checkerboard
9 spread squares on a platter, about 100 g each; serve with separately chosen dippers · Active 25 min · Cook 0 min · Total 1 hr 25 min
Print recipe · PDFA checkerboard can be made from food without building a fragile stack. Cooked beet colors half a bean spread; dill keeps the pale half fresh and savory.
Let color do the decorating
Ready-to-eat cooked beet gives a much stronger color than a few drops of its juice. Blend it into one part of the spread, then use separate spoons so the pale squares stay pale. A broad flat platter is easier to cover and carry than a wooden board.
Use nine generous marks
The squares are deliberately rustic, not a precision confection. Five red portions alternate with four pale ones. Spread each mound into a broad patch with a small spatula, leaving a little gap so people can distinguish the flavors.
Ingredients
- 450 g/1 lb drained ready-to-eat canned white beans, rinsed
- 150 g/5¼ oz plain cream cheese
- 60 g plain pasteurized yogurt (¼ cup)
- 30 ml lemon juice (2 tablespoons)
- 15 ml olive oil (1 tablespoon)
- 1 small garlic clove, 3 g, finely grated
- 2 g fine salt (about ⅓ teaspoon)
- 180 g/6⅓ oz commercially cooked ready-to-eat beet, drained and diced
- 8 g fresh dill, washed and dried, divided 2 g in spread and 6 g on top
Set out
Food processor, Colander, Two bowls, Scale, Lemon juicer, Knife and board, Two spoons and small spatula, Flat 30 × 30 cm/12 × 12 in serving platter with cover, Refrigerator and insulated cooler
Allergens
Milk. Check labels and substitutions.
Make it
- Blend beans, cream cheese, yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and salt until thick and mostly smooth. Scrape the bowl thoroughly so all the measured ingredients enter the spread.
- Weigh the base and divide it equally between two bowls, roughly 360 g each. Blend one half with all the beet. Stir 2 g finely chopped dill into the pale half. Keep separate clean spoons for the colors.
- Divide the red spread into 5 equal portions and the pale spread into 4 equal portions. On the covered platter, arrange 3 rows of 3 alternating colors, starting and ending each outside row with red. Spread each into a roughly 7 cm/2¾ in square, mounded rather than perfectly level.
- Divide the remaining 6 g dill over the 4 pale squares. Cover without pressing on the surface and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Serve chilled with a clean spoon; dippers are chosen separately and are not included in the yield.
Bring it
Transport the covered platter flat in a cooler with frozen packs, maintaining 40°F/4°C or below. Set out a small portion and keep the rest cold. Count travel and display without temperature control together: 2 hours maximum, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C.
Finish at the gathering
No oven or blender is needed. Request refrigerator space or a larger ice-filled tray; remove the cover and put out two clean serving spoons immediately before people eat.
Make it yours
Use nine alternating scoops in a shallow bowl when a broad platter will not fit the cooler. The two-color idea works for a quiet winter lunch as well as a busy party.
Ingredient labels
Cream cheese and yogurt contain milk. Dippers add their own allergens and must be labeled separately. Check canned bean and cooked beet labels.
A useful detail
The red portions are a little larger because beet is added after the base is divided. Approximately 900 g total spread makes 9 modest buffet portions; it is not a complete meal.
Another way
- Use 180 g ready-to-eat cooked carrot instead of beet for an orange-and-cream board; chill the carrot first.
- Replace dill with 8 g washed fresh parsley at the same 2 g/6 g allocation.
Keep it well
Keep covered at 40°F/4°C or below and use within 2 days, or the earliest opened dairy/bean deadline. Follow the Bring it handling limits. Do not drain away old liquid to extend storage. Freezing the assembled spread can split its dairy texture and bleed the colors.