| Russian Cabbage Borscht | |
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| prep time: 00:40 cook time: 01:00 serves: 6-8 cost: $3.75 vegetarian |
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| When fall rolls around, and the winds pick up, and the leaves start changing color, and the ivy gets red, and the weather is still good, but you realize it's about to suck: it's time to go to the farmer's market, buy lots of root vegetables, put them in the trunk while you go for an all-day hike at Letchworth, and then head home and.....well, I'm too tired. Oh, Genevieve, you're cooking. Thank you, yes, we'd love some. The park was great. The leaves are just that perfect combination of red and yellow. But it's okay that you still have all these beets, because beets and cabbage and potatoes keep well, and when the next weekend and the next roll around and you've given your lab talk and you finally have the energy, you can make borscht. | |
| 1 1/2 c thinly sliced potato 1 c thinly sliced beets 4 c water 2 T butter or olive oil 1 1/2 c chopped onion 1 large sliced carrot 2 stalks chopped celery 3 c chopped cabbage (red!) 1 t caraway seeds 2 t salt black pepper 1/4 t dill weed 1 T + 1 t cider vinegar 1 T + 1 t honey 1 c tomato puree toppings: sour cream dill weed chopped tomato |
It's a mystery, but while one batch of this serves six as a main dish, a double batch will serve the Russian army and their mothers all winter. Chop up vegetables in a food processor if possible. Place potatoes, beets and water in saucepan and cook until everything is soft (if the vegies are thinly sliced this only takes about 10 minutes). Drain and reserve cooking liquid. SautŽ onions in butter or oil in large pan over medium heat. Add caraway seeds and salt. Cook until onion is translucent, then add celery, carrots and cabbage. Add water from beets and potatoes and cook covered until all the vegetables are tender. Add potatoes, beets, and all remaining ingredients except toppings. Cover and simmer slowly for at least 30 minutes. Taste to correct seasonings. Serve topped with sour cream, extra dill weed and chopped fresh tomatoes. Optional: you can blend all or part of the soup in a blender or food processor to get a smoother texture. |