Beautiful Borscht

If you love Creamy Corn Soup, you might love this..


Two days ago, I went home at 16.30, greeted by my sister who’s constantly complaining of hunger.. :p She was not feeling well, having a cold and flu, plus preparing her presentation for yesterday’s exam. I decided to make something warm and light for dinner, so my sis would not be falling asleep instead of studying. High intake of carbohydrates causes drowsiness. Therefore, eating pasta or nasi goreng before study time may not be a wise decision.

I remembered having some beetroot in the fridge. I love their intense purplish-red color. Do you know that beetroot is rich in betalain pigments? This is unlike other red vegetables, which contain anthocyanin pigments. Some of the betalains in beets are betanin, isobetanin, probetanin, and neobetanin. Betanin is used as food colouring in confectionery , frozen products, tomato soup, powdered beverages, and also meat products, e.g. bacon and sausages. Betanin acts as an antioxidant.

So I made Borscht, a deep red soup of Ukranian origin, made from beetroot as the main ingredient, and very popular in Eastern and Central Europe. I reckon, this may have something to do with the story of Dracula of Transylvania.. heheh.. It seems everyone want to be vampires these day, thanks to Edward Cullen.. :D

This is my own version of Borscht..
(recipe for two)
Ingredients:
1 beetroot
1 onion
1 potato (I add potato to thicken the soup and make it more satisfying)
400 ml chicken or beef stock (You can make this from scratch or simply use stock cube/powder, e.g. Maggi or Royco)
cream/milk
salt and pepper to taste

Dice potato, beetroot and onion. Put the diced ingredients into simmering stock and cook until tender. Strain the vegetables (keeping the liquid on the pot), process them in the blender, then return the vegetable puree into the liquid on the pot. Add cream/milk, and season with salt and pepper

Actually, it can be served once the vegetables become tender, with the veggies cube intact. But I prefer it to be creamy and smooth. The taste is savoury-sweet, with pretty pink colour.. ^^

Serve with garlic bread/toast.

Bon appetit!