Beet Borscht. Growing up in a partly German family, I learned that I liked a lot of their traditional foods, including Beet Borscht. One of my favorite treats was Roll Kuchen with watermelon. Roll Kuchen is a deep fried yeast dough, much like a donut, so needless to say, I don’t eat that anymore unless I’m at a family reunion and then I just have to have a piece! Everything in moderation they say.
Beet Borscht, however, is an excellent traditional German food that I love having in my diet. It’s chock full of veggies and it tastes really great. I think the pink color from the beets makes it look pretty too.
There’s quite a bit of chopping in this recipe, but it makes a large pot of soup. Leftovers can be frozen. I think it’s easier just to chop everything first and then throw it together. “Chopped” should be bite size. Also, when chopping the celery, I use up the leaves and include them in the soup. It makes the soup look good and adds extra flavor!
Once everything is chopped, you’re able to put it together. Since the beets take a while to soften, we start cooking them first along with the water and harder vegetables. Bring to a boil, reduce to a rolling boil and let cook for at least 10 min. Meanwhile, the onion and celery and spices are sauteed in a pan.
Once they are softened, they are added to the pot along with the remaining ingredients. Your job is just about done. Let the soup cook until the beets and potatoes are softened, which you can test by inserting a fork. For serving, it’s nice to add a tsp of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. That adds creaminess to the soup and it makes it look good. Want a healthy sandwich to go with the soup? Try our Hand Held BLTA Chicken Sandwich!
Beet Borscht
A german inspired vegetable soup recipe that tastes delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 medium beets, chopped
- 2 medium potatoes, chopped
- 2 large carrots, chopped
- 1 cup green beans, chopped
- 1 tbsp white or apple cider vinegar
- 6 cups water
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped (use the leaves too!)
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp dried dill or 3-4 tbsp fresh dill chopped fine which is preferable
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup petite peas (Petite peas are sweeter!)
- 8 cherry tomatoes, chopped
- 1 can tomato sauce (or instead of cherry tomatoes and sauce, replace with 1 can diced tomatoes)
- 2 tsp honey
- sour cream or plain greek yogurt (optional)
Instructions
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Put potatoes and beets in a big pot. Add water, vinegar and salt. Bring to a boil. Add carrots and beans and boil for 10 minutes.
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Meanwhile in a frying pan, heat up the butter and add onion and celery. (Sometimes borscht has cabbage in it too. I have also added cabbage at times, so if you have cabbage on hand you may want to add it. Simply grate about 2 cups of cabbage and add it to the onions and celery when sauteing) Saute till tender– do not brown. Stir in the parsley and dill.
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After the 10 minutes, add all the remaining ingredients including the onion mixture to your big pot. Stir and bring to a boil again. Put lid on and simmer 30 more minutes. Beets should be tender – if they’re not, simmer longer until tender.
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This soup is best the next day so all the flavors have time to meld together. When serving, add a dollop of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt on top.
