Red beet is a vegetable belonging to the family of chenopodiacee which is a variety of plants typical of temperate regions to which also the spinach belongs. It is also known as red turnip or red carrot. Red beet is a tuber which can only be bought fresh in autumn, just like potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes. Its characteristic purple-red colour is given by the presence of betaine which has remarkable antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It’s also useful to preserve eyesight and maintain a good cardiovascular health. Beet is also rich in minerals, vitamins, trace elements and microelements that revitalize red blood cells and rebalance iron levels making it a natural tonic against fatigue, lack of appetite and anemia. Originally from North Africa, beet was known in the ancient Greek and Roman worlds where it was mainly used for its medicinal properties rather than edible ones. Later on, thanks to its cultivation in the monasteries, the red beet arrived in Spain and France, but in Europe only the leaves were originally consumed. Its use for food purposes dates back to 1700 and is closely linked to the discovery of the sugar that can be extracted from it. Indeed in 1747 the Prussian chemist Andreas sigismund Marggraf began to produce beet sugar commercially and opened the first factory in 1801 in Cunern, Poland.