Wine country borscht

4 Servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
Date: Wed, 23 Oct 1996 08:35:25

Directions

3 TB olive oil

3 lb cubed lean stewing beef, -- : such as brisket or tri-tip 1½ c diced carrots

1 ½ c sliced onions

2 TB chopped garlic

½ c diced celery

5 c peeled and diced raw beets 2 c seeded and diced tomatoes

8 c rich beef stock

3 c dry red wine

1 ½ ts fennel seed

2 ts thyme leaves (or 1 teaspoon : dried)

2 TB balsamic vinegar

: Kosher salt and freshly : ground black pepper

¼ c finely chopped fresh

: parsley

1 ½ c diced red potatoes

2 ½ c finely shredded green

: cabbage

1 ts caraway seed

1 ½ lb roasted and peeled beets, -- : cut into ¼-inch dice : Garnish: Sour cream

In a stockpot, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the beef in batches and quickly brown on all sides. Remove the meat and reserve.

Add the carrots, onions, garlic and celery. Saute until the vegetables are lightly colored. Return the beef to the pot and add the raw beets, tomatoes, stock, wine, fennel seed and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer partially covered for 1 ½ to 2 hours or until the beef is very tender. Occasionally skim off the fat as the borscht simmers.

Strain the soup carefully, pressing down gently on the meat and vegetables to extract as much liquid as possible. Set aside the beef cubes and discard the remaining vegetables, if desired. Return the beef and strained liquid to the stockpot. (The soup can be made ahead to this point and refrigerated overnight.) Add the balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the parsley and keep warm.

In a separate saucepan, in lightly salted boiling water, blanch the potatoes until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and keep warm. In a medium saute pan, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the cabbage and caraway seed. Saute until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.

To serve, ladle the borscht into warm soup bowls. Add the roasted beets, potatoes and sauteed cabbage. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream.

Yield: 8 servings

Recipe By :COOKING RIGHT SHOW #CR9602 ~0400

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