I have to say, I feel really, really sorry for those unfortunate people who are convinced they don't like beets. I can thoroughly understand not wanting to eat canned beets (though I still like to throw them on salads sometimes...or I did up until last year when I stopped buying things in cans) but until you've tasted a roasted beet, you really shouldn't make a judgement.
The other day at work I had to make a vegetable side for the dinner service, and I decided to once again give the people the chance to experience delicious roasted beets. I cranked it up a notch by adding toasted anise seeds to the finished beets.
OMG. So delicious. It turns out that this is fairly common among the Germans (and beets with fennel is fairly common in other beet eating regions) but I felt like I had discovered something fabulous and earth shattering.
So I went around to the co-workers asking them to try this amazing decadent and yet virtuous concoction. Not a single one of them would touch it to their lips, claiming to hate either beets, anise, or both. I just shook my head.
I don't know if they have been featured at dinner yet or not, but it doesn't look like a single beet has been consumed (except for the ones I've pilfered whenever I see them) Shame.