It is spring... and I want to cook something that is green and fresh and could only be cooked in springtime, using my Northeastern vegetable garden bounty, which, at this time, is quite limited. So, overwintered spinach, sorrel, baby kale, dandelion, cilantro, lots of greens washing, chopping - and green sorrel borscht is ready. Enjoy the bowl of spring green borscht as a healthy lunch.
Ingredients:
Lots of spring greens, cleaned, stems removed, chopped.
Broth ( optional, could just use water, just add couple of bouillon cubes)
Vegetable oil or butter ( I prefer to use clarified butter for soups)
Small onion, finely chopped
2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped in small cubes.
1 carrot
1 teaspoon of sour cream per serving, or couple teaspoons of heavy cream, or clotted
cream ( the best, in my opinion)
Put the pot with water or broth at the medium heat. Add carrot and potatoes to the pot. While they cook, wash and finely chop the greens. Sauté onion, using vegetable oil or butter on a low heat on a large skillet . Onion should be soft and translucent, it takes 10-15 minutes to sauté the onion. Gradually add chopped greens, until they slightly wilted. Add onion and greens to the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste and cook on a medium heat for about 30 minutes. Grate the carrot ( it should be ready) and return to the soup. Serve hot or cold, adding sour cream and half of hard boiled egg in each plate.
What greens to use: short answer - whatever you have, but a lot. If no sorrel - use lemon juice to achieve the sour-ish taste of the soup. Dandeloin leaves, stinging nettles are the usual in the old Russian recipes. I adopted baby kale, Swiss chard, spinach - plenty of those in the garden now.
Variations: my sister used sorrel and wild leek that she picked by her upstate NY house. A bit different recipe - I will ask her to publish it.