Golden Borscht

This is one of the very few dishes my dad used to make when I was a child because my mom was the true queen of the kitchen. To my surprise, his soup always turned out astoundingly delicious. Borscht is an Eastern European dish with countless different versions and passed down family recipes. This is just one of them, and I tried to stay as close as possible to my dad’s take on it. The original Ukrainian Borscht is made with red beets, has a deep ruby color, and is often served with dill and sour cream. I swapped dill for parsley and added a dollop of homemade vegan crème fraîche to every bowl! So good!

Ingredients (for 6-8 servings):

• 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 1 small head green cabbage, outermost leaves removed, quartered lengthwise, cored, and shredded
• 1½ lb (680 g) yellow potatoes, like Yukon Gold, cut into bite-size pieces
• 8 cups (about 2 liters) vegetable broth; I prepared it with homemade veggie broth concentrate
• 5 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp caraway seeds
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1-2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 3 good-size golden beets, peeled and coarsely shredded
• 3 large carrots, greens removed, scrubbed and diced
• 6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• freshly cracked black pepper to taste
• Celtic sea salt to taste, if necessary
• 2 large stalks celery, diced
• some tender beet greens, minced

Toppings:

• vegan sour cream or homemade crème fraîche
• fresh parsley to taste, minced
• hot sauce (optional); I used Sambal Oelek

Preparation:

Preheat a large pot with 4 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat.

Add diced onion and sauté for 8-10 minutes or until golden.

Add shredded cabbage and cook for 10 minutes while stirring occasionally. The cabbage will wilt quite a bit and make room for more veggies.

Add potatoes, vegetable broth, tomato paste, caraway seeds, bay leaves, turmeric, and maple syrup. Stir well and bring to a boil. Cook over medium heat for another 10 minutes.

Add beets, carrots, and garlic to the pot and stir well.

Bring to a boil again, then cook covered over medium heat for 10-15 minutes. Potatoes should be soft and beets still have a little bite. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper and, if necessary, Celtic sea salt.

Add celery and beet greens, stir, close lid, and turn off heat. The celery will add a nice crunch to the soup.

Let sit for about 10 minutes, then serve with vegan sour cream, lots of parsley and, optionally, hot sauce or sambal oelek. Enjoy!

Notes:

• Even better the next day!
• Borscht is perfect if you have a crowd to feed.
• Feel free to use red instead of golden beets, but remember to protect your clothes and light surfaces. Red beet stains can be hard to remove.
• Leftovers can be frozen!