Winter Borscht Food

WINTER BORSCHT

Steps:

• Coarsely chop beets, preferably in a food processor. In a medium pot, combine beets, 4 cups water and vinegar; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until beets are soft, about 45 minutes. Strain and set juice aside. (Beets can be used for another purpose, like salad.)
• Meanwhile, in a deep pot, combine carrot, celery, onion, stock, bay leaves and allspice; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes. Strain and discard aromatics and vegetables.
• Combine strained stock and beet juice and simmer 5 minutes. Add sugar, garlic and black pepper. Season to taste with sugar and salt. Serve with dumplings, if desired, and sprinkle with dill.

RUSSIAN BORSCHT

Steps:

• Put the grated beets in a pot with enough water to barely cover, and add the thick lemon slices. Bring to a boil and simmer until the beet is soft, about 20 minutes.
• Put the potatoes and cabbage together in a large stockpot with water. Boil until nearly tender, about 30 minutes.
• In a frying pan with olive oil (or butter), fry the onions, garlic, and carrots until the onion is translucent. Add the tomatoes and the tomato paste, mix all together and cook on medium heat for a couple of minutes with bay leaves, salt and pepper.
• When the potatoes and cabbage are nearly done, add the mix in the frying pan to the water. Remove the lemon from the beet mixture and bring all to a boil. Let it simmer at least 30-45 mins, and then once it comes off the heat, it's better if it sits half an hour or so.
• Check the flavors. Add more salt or pepper to taste. If too sweet, add in a dash of vinegar. Remove the bay leaves and serve. Top with sour cream and chopped fresh dill if desired.

WARSZAWA'S WINTER BORSCHT

Steps:

• Cook beets in water over medium-low heat until soft, about 45 minutes.
• Drain, reserving liquid in soup pot.
• Peel and grate beets and add to reserved liquid.
• Saute onion in butter over medium heat until softened, 5 minutes; add sausage and green onions and saute until sausage is heated through; add sausage mixture to beet soup mixture, add salt and white pepper to taste.
• Boil soup about 5 minutes; add lemon juice, beans, sugar, parsley and dill, reserving some parsley and dill for garnish.
• Return soup to a boil, taste and adjust seasoning. If making a vegetarian borscht, saute the veggie sausage separately and add the sausage pieces here.
• Remove from heat and stir in sour cream; do not let boil.
• Ladel borscht into serving bowls and garnish eash with egg, remaining dill and parsley.

CLASSIC BORSCHT RECIPE

Steps:

• In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Slice the beef into 2-inch pieces and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
• In a large skillet, sauté the carrots, onions and beets in 4 tablespoons of cooking oil. Sauté the vegetables until they are soft (7-10 minutes) and add them into the beef broth. Drain and rinse beans and add them to the pot. Cook the soup for 20 minutes.
• Drain and rinse beans and add them to the pot. Simmer for another 15 minutes.
• Add in the sliced potatoes to the pot and simmer them for another 15 minutes.
• After the potatoes are almost done cooking, add in the sliced cabbage to the pot. Next, add in the ground pepper, salt to taste, vinegar and ketchup. Let the borscht simmer for 10 more minutes.
• Serve the borscht with a dollop of sour cream or mayo. Enjoy!

WINTER BORSCHT

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, cover the beef with 6 cups water. Stir in the onion and quartered carrot. Bring to a boil. Skim off any foam and fat that rises to the surface. Lower the heat, and simmer gently for 1 hour 30 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, and measure the liquid; there should be about 4 1/2 cups. Reserve the liquid and the meat.
• Return the beef and strained liquid to the pan. Bring to a boil. Add the beets, and return to a boil. Lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the tip of a knife easily pierces the beets. Remove the beets, and allow to cool slightly. Peel them, and grate coarsely. Return the grated beets to the soup.
• Dissolve the tomato paste in 1/2 cup of the soup, and stir back into the pot. Stir in the garlic, grated carrot, cabbage, tomatoes, bay leaf, vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Remove the meat, and discard the bones. Slice the meat 1/2-inch thick, and stir into the soup, along with the cubed potatoes, salt, pepper and the 1/3 cup dill. Return to a boil for 2 minutes.
• If desired, place a half potato in the bottom of each large bowl. Ladle in the soup. Top with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of dill.

WINTER BORSCHT

Steps:

• Put the broth, beets and potatoes in a large heavy-bottomed pot and bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook until the vegetables are just tender, about 20 minutes. Uncover and stir in the cabbage and red wine vinegar. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper (taste for sodium levels in the broth before salting). Simmer for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Ladle the soup into serving bowls and serve warm. Enjoy!

BORSCHT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Put the vegetables and garlic on a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil (or a doubled piece of regular), drizzle with olive oil, season with 1/2 teaspoon salt add the rosemary. Seal the foil to make a tight package. Put the package in a roasting pan. Roast until the beets can be pierced easily with a knife, about 1 to 1/2 hours. When the beets are cool enough to handle, peel them¿the skins should slide right off with a bit of pressure from your fingers. If they don't, use a paring knife to scrape off any bits that stick.
• Put 1/2 of the vegetables in a food processor with 1/2 of the broth and puree. Transfer the puree to a saucepan. Repeat with the remaining vegetables and broth. Stir in remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and season with pepper, and simmer over medium heat until the flavors come together, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the buttermilk and Worcestershire.
• Ladle Borscht into bowls and garnish with dill.