Don't Let the Girl

 Beets from The Vegetable Grower's Guide

Don't let the girl pare these esculents all over as she does turnips. Don't let her cut off the tops and roots with a careless knife. Tell her to wash them clean, but not to draw blood with even so much as a scratch. And when they are boiling don't let her thrust her fork into them promiscuously to see if they are done; tell her to make her trials on one beet in particular. So shall you garnish your table with a dish beautifully colored as well as toothsome. Peel after boiling, cut into slices, sprinkle with salt and pepper and put on a little piece of butter.

Recipe for "Beets" in Oneida Community Cooking (1873)