Mock Borsht

I came up with this recipe because I had some wonderful yummy Borscht while on a Mission Trip in Ukraine this May.  Saying you're making Borscht is kinda like saying you're making Soup, in more ways than one... it basically is a soup, and there are as many Borscht recipes as there are cooks (or maybe more recipes than cooks)… anyhoo… I decided to try my hand at it, and in true good-cook fashion simply used what I already had on hand (why run to the store if you don't need to)… So while most Borscht recipes I looked at had cabbage & potatoes this one doesn't, I simply didn't have them on hand… I think my sister-cooks in Ukraine would have done the same thing...

Celery Flakes, available at Penzeys

I had celery, but didn't want to bother to chop it up fine, so I used Celery Flakes instead…

Messy but effective - grating root vegetables...

My grater got a workout… ok, in truth I got a workout with my grater… sheesh!!  The only caution I would give is this: be careful with the Beets, they can stain… nice pretty bright pink… no, I didn't stain anything (this time)…


Ingredients (this time):
  4 cups Water
  2 tsp Better than Bouillon Beef
  2 tsp Better than Bouillon Mushroom
(instead of the 3 ingredients above you could use 4 cups of broth…)
  1 Tbl Celery Flakes (or 1 stalk Celery chopped up fine)
  1/8 tsp Ground Cloves
  1-2 Tbl Red Wine Vinegar (don't go more than 2 Tbl)
  2 cloves Garlic, crushed/pressed
  Salt & Pepper (to taste)
  2/3 medium Red Onion, diced
  2 1/2 cups grated fresh Beets
  1 cup grated fresh Parsnip
  1 cup grated fresh Carrot
  1 cup grated fresh Turnip
  1 cup grated fresh Sweet Potato (peel before grating)
  1 cup diced Tomato
  2 Aidells Chicken & Apple Sausage, chopped up
  4 Tbl Fat Free Sour Cream
  1-2 Tbl Fresh Chopped Dill


Throw all but the last 2 ingredients in the Crock Pot on Low in the Morning…

And by Evening… it's Borscht!!  Or at the very least its Borscht-like :)

Serve hot or refrigerate it to be served another day (Borscht is eaten both hot & cold), just before serving garnish with Fat Free Sour Cream & Fresh Chopped Dill.

This is leftovers, heated up for lunch a couple days later… Yum!

More about Borscht… what seems to make it Borscht is the predominance of Root Vegetables, which are more available in the colder months (can be stored for longer periods of time), chopped or grated finely… Beets aren't necessary (I've had non-beet Borscht)… in the recipes I've seen they all seem to have the Red Wine Vinegar, and that adds a particular flavor… and when in Ukraine it was always served with Sour Cream and fresh chopped Dill…


That said have fun, play with the vegetables, play with the meat (I may try Lamb Sausages next time)… and enjoy!!


Want to make it Vegetarian?  Try adding some of my Sausage Spice & omitting the meat…