North Croatian Creamy Vegetable Soup Recipes

NORTH CROATIAN GREEN PEAS SOUP

Steps:

• Clean the green peas and put it into hot water for 5 minutes. Grate of slice carrot and sauté on butter; after a while, mince onion and sauté both on butter until onion is translucent.
• Add finely sliced pancetta and sauté not more than 5 minutes. Add flour and fry about 2 minutes, than add cold water and make creamy liquid (like sauce veloute).
• Cut green parts of spring onion, mince parsley and celery leaves and add into pot. Add green pea and about 1 liter of beef stock. Add salt and pepper.
• Cook until green peas are soft. When soft, remove green pea and blend it into puree (leave 1/6 of peas untouched). You can blend it with stick blender so you do not have to remove geen pea. Add thyme and cook 15 minutes.
• At the end add sour cream and minced chive. Serve with croutons.

NORTH CROATIAN CUCUMBER STEW ("CUSPAJZ OD KRASTAVACA")

Steps:

• Peel the cucumbers and cut them as for salad. Salt it and put aside for 10 minutes.
• Melt lard and add finely minced garlic and flour and sauté it until flour become brownish. Add paprika and stir well. Add cold water and make creamy liquid.
• Squeeze cucumbers with hand to extract bitter liquid and add cucumbers into the pot. Add vinegar, salt and pepper and cover with water.
• Cook not more than 30 minutes. Before serving add sour cream and stir.

NORTH CROATIAN BEANS SOUP

Steps:

• After soaking beans overnight, cook beans until soft. Drain the beans and put aside two teaspoons of whole beans.
• Make puree out of all other beans using blender (or whatever you use). Finely mince onion, garlic and bacon.
• Melt lard in a cooking pot and sauté onion until translucent. Add garlic and bacon and sauté it not more than 2 minutes.
• Add flour and brown it but not too much. Add cold water and make creamy liquid.
• Add hot and sweet paprika and stir.
• Add beans puree and whole beans, stir. Add bay leaf and vinegar; season with salt and pepper. Add water and cook about 45 minutes.
• Before serving taste the soup, if it is not sour you may drop few drops of vinegar (if you do cook for more 5 minutes). Add sour cream and parsley leaves and serve.

NORTH CROATIAN GOULASH SOUP ("GULAS JUHA")

Steps:

• Melt lard and sauté finely minced onion until become soft and transparent. Cut kohlrabi and carrot into small cubes and saute until slightely softens.
• Slice beef into small (1 cm in diameter) pieces and add into the pot. Sauté beef in its own juices and after 5 to 10 minutes add red paprika (hot and sweet) salt and pepper. Stir well and add flour.
• Sauté everything until flour starts to brown and add water (it is on you to decide to use all water or not). Add thyme.
• Peel potato and cut into small pieces (1 cm in diameter) and add into the soup. Cook until potato and meat are soft or 90 minutes.

EASY, CREAMY VEGETABLE SOUP

Steps:

• Simmer onion, carrot and celery in water for 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. In a blender or food processor; puree all vegetables. Add salt, pepper, chicken broth and cream. Heat before serving, but do not boil.