Borscht with Kvas (Beetroot Soup) In the Bag - Detox Special

Its really hard for me to even think, that few years earlier, I used to hate soups. I was cajoled, threatened, blackmailed by my mom to start having soups to no effect. Then during my college days, a friend of mine managed to get me hooked to Tomato soup which was totally delicious in our cafeteria - but that was that! No other soups for me. Then after marriage, I started trying out various soups - well because I wanted to just - you know- try it out. Surprisingly I started liking the soups - No, don't think me conceited , but somehow my soups actually inculcated the habit and now here I am willing to try all kinds of soups.:)



Borscht (borsht or borshch ) is traditionally an Eastern Europe soup where the prominence is given to Beetroot along with other vegetables. There are basically two variations of this soup – hot and cold and since we are not fans of cold soup, I opted for the former. It is totally yummy with minimal ingredients and effervescent flavors. The color is deep red thanks to the beetroot and its only enhanced further with the addition of Beetroot Kvas. This is a recipe from a ‘Detox health-plan cookbook’ which I adapted quite mildly for my tastes.

Ingredients


• 2 beetroot, peeled
  
  
• 1 large carrot
  
  
• 1 celery stick
  
  
• 1 onion
  
  
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
  
  
• 1/4 cup of tomato puree
  
  
• 1 bay leaf
  
  
• few sprigs of parsley/cilantro
  
  
• 3-4 cloves
  
  
• 4-5 whole black peppercorns
  
  
• about 3 cups of water/vegetable stock
  
  
• 2/3 cup of beetroot Kvas (recipe follows)
  
  
• salt and pepper to taste
  
  
• few chives to garnish
  
  
• 2-3 tsp of fresh lemon juice
  

Method

To prepare Beetroot Kvas

Grate one beetroot, add it to 2/3 cup of water and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Cover and set aside for about 30 min.



For Borscht

In a saucepan, in 1/2 tsp of olive oil, saute the onions until soft (yes, chop onions first - otherwise they will look 'bloody' like this one :)



Chop beetroot, celery and carrot into thick strips and then along with garlic add them to the onions. Saute for 2 seconds with little salt (about a pinch or so).



Add the tomato puree and saute for another 1-2 min.



Tie the bay leaf, peppercorns, herbs and cloves in a muslin cloth. Add about 3 cups of water/stock to the saucepan, drop the muslin cloth with the stock, cover and cook for 20-30 minutes until the vegetables are soft.



Remove the muslin bag, add the strained Kvas, season to taste and serve garnished with chives.

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This is my entry to 'In the Bag' event which focuses on a Detox special this month with the ingredients - Beetroot, Carrot and Celery

This is also my entry for SWC : Soups hosted by Neha conceptualized by Cooking Station

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How to Remove Beetroot Stains

I love Beets and use it so often for my recipes. While I love the color, I personally am not so sure about seeing the color everywhere in my kitchen - wooden boards, counter tops, my clothes etc. Here are some tips which have helped me to counter this 'bloody' trail.

1. Its always better to clean right after cutting the beets. Don't let it dry out. Makes cleaning a bit harder.

2. Better safe than sorry - so don't wear your snow white, ultra light colors when cutting Beets - old worn out clothes are a good idea! :) Or else wear an Apron.

3.Having Lemons are such a boon. If your wooden chopping board has stained - sprinkle some salt over its "wounds" / stains - let it sit for 15-20 minutes, then with a chopped lemon rub it on the stains until the stain slowly dissoves. Sometimes if the stain is not dark enough, just lemon juice rubbed on the stained part for 20-30min is enough.

Few more tips in the following links :-

1) Tips to remove Beetroot stains from Carpet

2) Tips to remove Beetroot stains from clothes and Fabric

3) Tips to remove Beetroot stains from upholstery

Black Eyed Peas (cowpeas) and Potato curry

Another staple in my pantry after Chickpeas is Black Eyed Peas. Since I have been on a pantry cleaning run, I saw a small handful of these left over in the packet. I wanted to use them but at the same time, I had few guests coming over and it sure won't be enough for all of us. Hence thought of adding some potatoes to make the dish more mealy and of large quantity. These are also known as cowpeas and are rich in protein, magnesium, iron and folate. They are also immensely versatile.



They can be used in multiple ways from soups, to yummy and crunchy snacks to main course dishes. They also help to fill one up faster thus making me to resort to these for salads etc. I am on an everlasting diet remember!!!!! This curry is very simple to make and has hardly any prep work. All you need is to soak these, chop few potatoes, dump them along with spices together in one pot and forget them for next 20-30 min and Viola! yummy curry ready.

Ingredients


• 1 cup Black eyed peas (cowpeas), soaked overnight
  
  
• 1 onion, chopped
  
  
• 1/2 cup tomato puree
  
  
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
  
  
• 2-3 small potatoes, chopped with skins on
  
  
• 1 tsp cumin
  
  
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  
  
• 1 tsp garam masala
  
  
• 1 cup mix of mint and cilantro (Grind this into paste along with 2-3 chillies. You can add 2-3 tbsp of grated coconut too)
  
  
• salt to taste
  
  
• 1 Bay leaf
  
  
• curry leaves for garnish
  

Method

1.Saute cumin seeds in 1/2 tsp oil. Add onions, ginger garlic, salt along with bay leaf and spices.



2.Add the potatoes, saute them for 2-3 minutes and then add drained black eyed peas



3.Add the tomato puree and cook for another 1-2 min



4.Add sufficient water to cover the mixture - about 1 to 1-1/2 cups, close the lid and let it cook for 15-20 min.



5.Once the black eyed peas have been cooked, add the ground paste - cook for another 5 min.



Serve hot with Phulkas or rice.