Cold Cherry Borscht Recipes

COLD CHERRY BORSCHT

Steps:

• Set aside 18 cherries. Pit the remaining cherries, holding them over a bowl to catch the juices. Place the pitted cherries in the bowl with the juices, and place the pits in a small saucepan. Add 1 cup of the water, the rose geranium sprig, the sugar and the lemon zest. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 5 minutes. Strain the liquid in the saucepan into the bowl with the pitted cherries. Discard the pits.
• Transfer the cherries and liquid to a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Working in batches and covering the blender top with a kitchen towel to avoid hot splashes, puree the soup, about 1 1/2 cups at a time. Strain through a medium strainer into a bowl, pushing the soup through with the back of a ladle or with a rubber spatula. Stir in the almond extract, a pinch of salt and the lemon juice. Chill the soup by placing the bowl in a larger bowl of ice water, or refrigerate.
• When the soup has chilled, whisk in the yogurt. Taste and add more lemon juice if desired.
• Serve garnished with the cherries you set aside.

COLD RUSSIAN BORSCHT

Steps:

• Remove stems and leaves from beets, but leave on skins. In a deep pot, cover beets with cold water and bring to a boil. Boil until fork tender, about 40 minutes.
• Drain beets, but reserve two cups of the liquid. Strain the liquid and add to a large saucepan. Remove skin from beets. Grate beets through coarsest blade of grater. Add to beet liquid. Add beef broth, onion, salt, pepper and vinegar. Bring to a boil, and then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes, then remove from the heat.
• Chill in refrigerator for one hour, or until cold before serving. Ladle into bowls and top each serving with cucumber and a big spoonful of sour cream.

COLD BORSCHT

Steps:

• Place the beets in an 8-inch-by-8-inch-by-2-inch dish, with the smaller ones toward the center. Cover the dish tightly with microwave-safe plastic wrap. Cook the beets at 100 percent power in a 650- to 700-watt oven for 16 minutes. Prick the plastic to release the steam.
• Remove from the oven and uncover. Allow the beets to stand until cool.
• Wearing rubber gloves to prevent staining your hands, peel and grate the beets. Reserve.
• Combine the vegetable broth, sugar and vinegar in a two-and-one-half-quart souffle dish or casserole with a tightly fitting lid. Cover and cook at 100 percent power for three minutes.
• Remove from the oven and uncover. Stir to dissolve any remaining sugar. Stir in the reserved beets. Refrigerate until cool.
• Stir in the remaining ingredients and season. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

CHERRY BORSCHT

Steps:

• In a large saucepan or soup pot, place canned beets with juice, carrots, cherries and broth. Bring to a boil then simmer until carrots are tender. Add vinegar and sugar then cool slightly. Using half at a time, puree in a blender until smooth, then return to saucepan. Bring back up to a boil. In a two cup measure or small bowl, stir together sour cream and flour. Add 1/2 cup hot soup to sour cream and stir until smooth. Add another 1/2 cup and stir again then stir into soup. Continue stirring until well blended. Serve soup hot or cold.

COLD BORSCHT

Steps:

• Using a food processor, pulse beets until finely chopped. Transfer to a large saucepan and add onion, salt and 2 1/2 quarts (10 cups) water. Place over high heat to bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until onion is tender, about 40 minutes. Add sugar and lemon juice, and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Remove onion and discard. Pour soup into a heatproof container and allow to cool to room temperature. Adjust salt, sugar and lemon juice to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve chilled, with chilled boiled potatoes added to soup, if desired. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.