Refreshing summer soup of beet broth and fresh chopped vegetables.
Cook Time3 hourshrs
Total Time3 hourshrs
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Belarusian, Russian, Ukrainian
Keyword: beets, first course, soup, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian
Servings: 6
Ingredients
3-4mediumbeetswith greens
3ozcelery root(for stock)
1-2parsley roots(for stock)
½largeonion(for stock)
1largecarrot(for stock)
1bay leaf(for stock)
2mediumpotatoes
6cupswater or 1 quart vegetable stock plus 2 cups water
1lemon, halvedor 2 Tbsp vinegar
2clovesgarlic
½tspsugar
salt
pepper
2Tbspfresh dill
2Tbspfresh parsely
scallionsfor garnish
2smallcucumbersfor garnish
3-4radishesfor garnish
3-4pickled cucumbersfor garnish
2hard-boiled eggsoptional
sour cream or smetanaoptional
Instructions
Cut the green tops from the beets and set aside. Wrap the beets in foil and bake at 350°F for an hour.
Meanwhile, put 3 ounces celery root, two parsley roots, 1 large carrot cut in chunks, ½ large onion, 1 bay leaf and 2 large potatoes in a large soup pot. Add 6 cups water and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer the stock for an hour until beets are done. After a half hour remove the potatoes and set aside to cool.
Remove beets from foil and let cool. Strain the vegetables and bay leaf from the vegetable stock; discard them.
Peel the beets and dice into ½-inch cubes. Repeat with potatoes. Add to the vegetable stock.
Squeeze juice of one half lemon into the soup. Dice 2 garlic cloves and chop 2 tablespoons each of fresh dill and parsley; add to soup. Stir in ½ teaspoon sugar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Bring the soup to a boil then turn off the heat. Let cool on stovetop until it can be place in the refrigerator to chill.
While soup chills, prepare the garnish vegetables by dicing them into ¼-inch cubes. Distribute a few pinches into serving bowls.
Ladle cold soup over the garnish vegetables. Sprinkle more fresh herbs and add a sliced hard boiled egg and sour cream, if desired. Serve with ice cubes if you want to make sure the soup is extra chilled.
Notes
Wear gloves when handling baked beets or you will stain your fingers.