Chilled Beet Borscht

There are two types of people in the world: people that love beets and people that hate them. People seem to either make the "icky" face whenever I talk about them, or they light up with a smile. I, personally, love beets, but didn't get into them until I was an adult. I'm so glad I tried them, because they are so healthy and versatile!

Last week I made Chilled Beet Borscht. I started by softening some beets on the stove. Beets are highly photogenic. I will never tire of that divine color.

After the beet had softened and cooled, I added some of the other ingredients to the soup: dill, a little buttermilk, salt, pepper, and some minced dill pickle. The dill pickle was really lovely, it added just the right amount of crunch and salty goodness.  I garnished the soup with a little slice of hard boiled egg.

I've never had cold soup like this before, and I thought it was really good.  I shared some with a little friend as well, and turns out, he's one of my kind: he loves beets!

Comprehensively Stuffed Squash with Beet Purée

Thanksgiving Day is a family oriented holiday for me, so when my friend Chelsea organized a casual Saturday evening Thanksgiving dinner for friends, I was thrilled to be a part of it. I am beyond thankful for the generosity and unconditional love I feel from my family, and I am so glad we share a special Thursday every year to reflect on that. I am also quite thankful for my longtime supportive friends, and this new tradition of spending a night together surrounded with homemade goods was special in and of itself.

I chose to make Comprehensively Stuffed Squash and Beet Purée for the dinner. When I opened the Moosewood cookbook and saw that this squash recipe was "perfect for a holiday meal, especially Thanksgiving," I knew I had hit the jackpot!

I started by roasting two acorn squash. The stuffing for the squash consisted of many minced delights: onion, garlic, mushrooms, celery, sunflower seeds, walnuts, raisins, apricots, and bread crumbs. Now, not all of those ingredients were minced... but the majority were. Charlie is an excellent mincer (I think it has something to do with his unending supply of patience) and his help was greatly appreciated.

Everything was heated on the stove together with some lemon juice, salt, black pepper, thyme, and the most important holiday stuffing ingredient: sage! Sage looks like the dust bunnies that collect in a vacuum cleaner, but smells like Thanksgiving dinner. Great stuff, I tell ya. After stuffing the squash, half received an adornment of grated cheddar cheese. The squash was heated through in the oven prior to serving.

The beet purée was simple and pure. I made the puree from roasted baby beets, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, honey, salt & peppers, and a sprink-a-dink of tarragon. It was light and fresh tasting. It went well with the squash.

I am looking forward to the Moosewood delights I am making later this week for my family's Thanksgiving dinner, which you will read about soon. Looking back on this night of friendly dinner, I felt honored and thrilled to take part in the massive gathering! I hope we will continue to do it for years to come.

Russian Cabbage Borscht

Russian Cabbage Borscht: Not impressive when you ogle, but makes my mouth happy. Potato, beet, cabbage, carrot, celery, and onion all hang out on the stove until cooked down. Then the magic part: dill, black pepper, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, and a little tomato sauce. Super hot and toasty! Warmed me up to my core! Look at all those exclamation points!

Solyanka and Odessa Beets

You win some and you lose some, right? I went into this project knowing that I may sometimes fail. Not all of these recipes are going to knock the socks off my tastebuds. Solyanka is a prime example of one such fail. Solyanka first, we'll get to you in a minute, Odessa Beets.

Solyanka is a Ukranian style casserole. According to my computerized best friend, non-vegetarian versions of Solyanka are made with meat or fish, pickled cucumbers, and cabbage. It's supposed to resemble a thick, spicy, soup. Not exactly the most enticing dish, but I thought I'd give it a go.Solyanka is rich and tangy with varied texture, somewhat smooth because of the mashed potatoes, cottage cheese, and yogurt, and a little crunchy because of the cabbage, carrot, and sunflower seeds. My initial comparison was to Cooler Ranch Doritos... maybe because of the fresh dill. Charlie and my mom doctored the dish up with a little cheddar cheese on top, confirming for the dinner crowd that cheese truly does make anything better.Initially, I had hoped to serve Solyanka with Odessa Beets as a side. Unfortunately, the beets required an extra hour to tenderize in the oven, so it didn't sync up. Odessa Beets are also a Ukranian dish, made with grated beets, sliced dried plums, freshly minced garlic, pineapple, walnuts, and lemon juice. Beets are a food I could eat all day long. I love them roasted with a little olive oil in the oven. I love them in salads. I love them in juice! Beets are amazing. This salad was delicious, a little tangy because of the fresh garlic and lemon juice and a skosh sweet because of the dried plums and pineapple. I was pleased with how the beets turned out but am not sure I will make them again because they took so long in the oven!

All in all, this was a worthy attempt at trying something totally unique from the New Moosewood Cookbook. I'm glad I tried it, even though the food was a little disappointing and the dishes weren't done at the same time, as originally planned. Above all, it was worth it to share laughs over the dinner table with my family over such a unprecedented concoction!