Vegetarian Green Borscht (Spinach Soup)
This Ukrainian classic spinach soup is light, easy to make and loaded with vegetables.
Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 5 medium yellow potatoes cubed
- 3 - 5 carrots scrubbed and sliced
- 3 - 5 stalks carrot tops (optional) cleaned
- 2 parsnips (optional) sliced
- 2 celery stalks cut in half
- ¼ cup celeriac root (optional) peeled and cubed
- 3-5 whole parsley stems and leaves
- 8 cups water
- 2 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 bunch or clamshell spinach chopped
- 3 scallions sliced into thin circles
- 3 eggs hard-boiled and diced
- ½ lemon juiced
- ¼ cup dill chopped
- sour cream for serving
Instructions
- In a large pot or a 4.5-quart Dutch oven, over medium heat, heat olive oil, enough to coat the bottom of the pot.
- Add potatoes, carrots, and parsnips, stir periodically. Cook for about 7 minutes or until vegetables look slightly softened. Season with ½ tablespoon of salt.
- Add celeriac root, celery, carrot tops, parsley and 8 cups of water.
- Allow the liquid to come to a gentle simmer. Season with 1 tablespoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Close the lid, partially. Lower the heat to low. Cook until the potatoes are fork-tender about 30 minutes. Remove and discard parsley, carrot tops and celery.
- In the meantime, make hard-boiled eggs. Add eggs to a small pot, cover eggs with cool water and place on the stovetop over medium/ high heat. Cover the pot and let the water come to a rolling boil. Once the water reached this point, cook eggs for about 6 minutes. Turn off the heat, drain the water. Run the pot under cold water to stop the cooking process. Once the eggs have cooled down, dry and peel the shells.
- Add spinach and scallions, and the remaining ½ tablespoon of salt. Squeeze juice from half a large lemon. Continue cooking for about 3 min. Turn off the heat and add sliced or diced eggs.
- When serving, ladle soup into a bowl, add a spoonful of sour cream and a sprinkle of fresh dill.
Notes
*Use an egg maker to simplify hard boiling the eggs.
*Use an egg slicer to cube the egg. Start with slicing the egg horizontally then gently rotate it, and slice it the other way. It will form cubes or strips.