Last of the Soup Recipes (going out with the best)
I imagine this week’s recipes will be the last of the soup recipes for this year as where I live we are slipping nicely into spring. It looks like I have saved the best soup for last.
Years ago, before I was a qualified vegan chef I used to make a delicious Borscht soup. I tired of it though as it was blended soup and while I love blended soups this one just didn’t do it for me anymore. After more than a decade without Borscht I decided I needed it in my life again.
A few weeks ago a lovely new friend of mine Maria Carin of Galas Organic Kitchen posted about her borscht recipe in her cook book on Instagram. She shared with me her recipe and lo and behold it was an unblended soup.
I used inspiration from her recipe and added a few more ingredients and then blended half of the soup resulting in a lovely country style borscht soup with a nice thick broth. It was heavenly. We ate it for three nights in a row (unheard of for me as I usually only eat the same thing two nights in a row, never three). Made it again the week after and ate it for two more nights and have it on the menu for next week.
It is a rich and creamy soup with robust flavours and such heart warming yumminess. Remembering beetroot is high in calcium, iron, vitamin A and C and contains folic acid, a good amount of fibre, manganese and potassium. In addition I added Crimini mushrooms (the brown ones) and tomatoes, which are rich in niacin (B3).
Niacin is great for increasing HDL cholesterol which we need for our body and decreasing LDL cholesterol which we do not want to build up in our body. Niacin also has a good chance of helping out with arthritis symptoms. Increasing niacin is catching my attention as this is rather important for menopause and post menopause.
Enjoy this soup and be sure to let me know if you do indulge in it.
Borscht
Ingredients
½ tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
2 leeks cut small
2 stalks celery diced
2 carrots diced
2 medium potatoes diced
4 medium beetroots – 2 diced small and 2 grated
1 cup cooked lentils
2 tsp herb salt
8 cups water
400g tomatoes blended in a blender
¼ cup finely chopped dill
1 tsp caraway seeds
12 crimini mushrooms cut into 6 to 8 pieces
1 cup chard or collard greens shredded
Salt and pepper to taste
Tofu Cream Ingredients
100g silken tofu
2 tsp nutritional yeast
Salt to taste
1 to 2 tbsp lemon juice
Method
- For the tofu cream place everything in the blender until all combined and smooth.
- In a saucepan place the olive oil, garlic, leek, celery, caraway seeds, herb salt and a sprinkling of salt and a generous amount of pepper and fry for a few minutes.
- Add the water, blended tomato and diced beetroot and cook for 3 minutes. Next add the carrot, potato and dill and cook for 3 minutes. Then add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes.
- Season with salt then let cool a little and blend half of the soup. Place it back in the saucepan with the remaining half and add the grated beetroot and shredded chard or collard greens and cook for 5 minutes. Serve with the tofu cream.
# If you make this recipe please share on facebook or instagram to #veetsvegancookingschool
A Big Announcement at Veet’s Vegan Cooking School Next Week
I have big news to announce and will do so next week. No I’m not pregnant, far too old for that, the news is to do with my cooking courses and the Vegan Chef Training. Be sure to sign up to the newsletter for upcoming courses so as not to miss out on this announcement.
Have a wonderful week everyone.
Love Veet
