Jane's Harvard Beets

Culinary evidence confirms beets cooked with vinegar, sugar and spices have been enjoyed for hundreds of years by several cultures. Harvard Beets descend from this tradition. What makes this dish different is the addition of cornstarch, a manufactured thickening agent invented in the mid-19th century. Some 19th century English and American cookbooks contain recipes for beet pudding (a modern version of Medieval vegetable root puddings) and boiled beets, also sliced thin and served with butter and pickled (in vinegar).

Our (the Food Timeline) survey of historic American food history sources confirms recipes for "Harvard Beets" first surfaced in print in 1906. Recipes proliferated from World War I forwards; the earliest print specimens noting this as a "new" or "unusual" way to cook beets. Later books "matter-of-factly" state this is an old recipe, made in New England for several decades. None, however, offer print evidence or historic references.

This recipe is very similar to the Culinary Arts Institute Harvard Beet recipe in the recipe book “250 Ways to Cook Fresh Vegetables,” except that recipe uses 3/4 cup sugar as opposed to the 1/2 cup in this recipe. "In 1940, the director of the Culinary Arts Institute 'One of America’s foremost organizations devoted to the science of Better Cookery’ [Their capitalization] published booklets to encourage Americans to eat their vegetables. Since the government was encouraging Victory Gardens, there no doubt was a need to help housewives figure out what to do with all that produce."
- from https://ancestorsinaprons.com/

1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/3 cup vinegar
1/3 cup beet liquid from cooking them or water
4 cups cooked beets (sliced or diced)
3 tablespoons butter
1/8 teaspoon salt
pinch of pepper

Combine sugar and cornstarch; add vinegar and water and boil for 5 minutes.
Add beets and slowly simmer til heated through and sauce is thick (20 to 30 minutes).
Add butter and season with salt and pepper.

To cook fresh beets: Leave the beets whole with 2 inches of stems at the top and root ends at the bottom. Place beets in a large saucepan and add water to cover along with 1 Tbsp. lemon juice or vinegar. This will help to keep the beets from bleeding. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on size. Let cool until beets can be handled. While still warm, rub the skins off. They will slip right off with the root ends, but make sure you wear kitchen gloves so your hands don't turn red. Beets can also be steamed instead of boiled.