Roasted Beet and Potato Borscht

Friends sometimes say that my kids are easy in the variety of things they will eat. And I’ve kind of brushed that off – after all, James doesn’t eat meat, which is not especially easy, and Milo ate no fruits or vegetables at all except broccoli, apples and bananas, for years.

But then there was soup night potluck. When we brought out the borscht ,and James told the neighbor kids, eagerly, “Borscht! This is soo good!” and filled his bowl, and they looked on in faint stupefaction before turning to their hamburgers. Purple soup, who can blame them? Maybe my kids are a little odd. 

But if you get past the purple, this really is one fine and delicious dish.

Borscht isn’t a family dish for either of us, so we’ve tried a few different recipes along the way. My grandmother made a borscht that was more like a cabbage and tomato soup. The version Tom made for soup fest has a lot of beet flavor, no cabbage, and vegetables that are roasted adding richness. That, and the beets, also make the soup kind of sweet. Not sweet like dessert, but sweet like roasted onions and beets. 

Also on the menu was creamy squash bisque and chicken and kale soup. Look at these colors!

Add a little crusty bread and a peach cobbler made with the last of the frozen Michigan peaches, and you have the perfect winter potluck.

Roasted Beet and Potato Borscht

6 medium red beets, scrubbed and peeled.

2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

1 shallot (can substitute onion)

1 onion

½ tsp thyme

2 Tblsp. Olive oil

Kosher salt and black pepper

5 cups vegetable broth

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Garnish: sour cream, parsley or chives

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Serves 4

Cut 5 of the beets into medium dice. Coarsely grate the other beet and put aside.

Toss diced beets and diced potatoes, shallot and onion with the oil, thyme, salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheets. Sprinkle with thyme. Roast about 45 minutes.

Bring broth to a simmer in a large saucepan or stockpot. Add the vegetables. Mash about half of the soup with a potato masher or the back of a spoon. Add the vinegar, salt, pepper, and the grated beet. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Add additional broth or water if needed. Taste and add more vinegar if needed.

Serve garnished with a dollop of sour cream topped by the parsley or chives.

Three Things 2010

A few years ago my stand mixer changed my life. Then the electric tea kettle came into my world and became my favorite kitchen thing. (Thanks, mom, on both counts.) 2010 was a year of humbler updates. Thirteen years post-wedding-shower, I finally got around to acquiring or replacing a few of the little gadgets that make cooking more fun. (and by the way, I love it that department stores have a section called "gadgets.")

First we praise the pizza cutter, which Santa left in my stocking for Christmas last year. It is both practical and lovely with its chrome accents. No household with pizza lovers or bakers of homemade pizza should be without one of these. 

Second, a kitchen workhorse was updated when I replaced my old silicone spatulas. They did their work well but their wooden handles were starting to – ugh - mildew under the silicone. I’m not sure these metal-handled spatulas were the best choice for the stovetop because the metal tends to get hot, but for cookie and cake making, they are the bomb.

Third, just in time for the November/December cookie-making season, I finally broke down and replaced my dull grater with a proper microplane zester. It’s so easy and fun that I want to find more lemon and orange recipes just so I can get it out and play with it.

What was new in your kitchen last year?

Stuffed Acorn Squash

This is not technically a recipe, and I don't have a photo because it was just thrown together when I noticed squash was on sale. But Milo insisted, "Mom, put this on your list so you will remember to make it again." I have to admit, it was pretty good, inexpensive, relatively healthy, and if you have an hour to wait for the oven, only took about 5-10 minutes of actual work.

Easy Stuffed Acorn Squash

2 acorn squash (to serve 4 people)

1 box Near East rice pilaf of your choice (wild rice would be nice - I chose the classic)

a little extra water and rice (about 4 T/2 T)

bread crumbs

grated Parmesan cheese

olive oil, salt, pepper

Heat oven to 350. Cut acorn squash in half and scoop out seeds. (the "pretty way" across the middle). They will need to be able to sit cut-side up, so trim off stem if needed. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle on salt and pepper. Put cut side down on a baking sheet and cook for about 45 minutes until super-soft.

About 20 minutes into the baking, cook the rice pilaf. Follow package directions, but I added a little extra water and extra rice to make sure I had enough to fill all 4 squash halves. (it also cuts down on the saltiness.)

When squash is soft, remove from oven and flip over in pan. Fill with the rice pilaf. Mix some of the bread crumbs and some parmesan cheese (about 4 to 1 ratio?) and sprinkle on top. You could also add some paprika for color. 

Return the squash to the oven to brown the bread crumbs, about 10-15 minutes (keep an eye on them.) If you have a broiler that is adjustable you can use a low broiler setting to gently brown the top.

Serve 1 squash half per person. This is a pretty substantial serving, not a side dish - it was a "one dish" meal for us that night. It would be good with ham or sausage on the side, but doesn't really need it.

Sweet Allergen-free Treat

OK, this isn't a recipe, just an idea and not even one I came up with originally. I actually (a) wanted to show off this photo and (b) haven't been doing much cooking lately, except Christmas cookies. 

My first grader celebrated his 7th birthday the day before Thanksgiving break, and his classroom has quite a few allergies, and he loved the idea of these fruit kebabs with miniature marshmallows. I found the long (4") fruit skewers at Party City. The cocktail umbrellas I had on hand. A peeled clementine is holding one up in the center. I made one tray up to be pretty, and took the rest of the fruit and marshmallows to school for the kids to make their own. So, healthy sweet treat, kids could pick what they wanted on their skewers, and fun little easy activity. Anyone surprised that I saw several skewers of marshmallows only? 

Note: make sure that you remind kids to remove the fruit from their fruit kebabs instead of (oops) eating from the sharp pointy sticks. (everyone was fine!)

New World Skillet (Cheap Eats)

Around the beginning of the recession, our grocery store started featuring $15 dinner specials. Buy these 4 items totaling under $15 and you have dinner for four. Of course like any cheapskate worth the label, I scoff at that. I can make dinner for four for $5 without breaking a sweat! (leaves more in the checking account for splurging on the $50 dinners.)

The following dish is improvised, mostly pantry-based, and cheap as heck if the squash is on sale. It’s also fast and simple to throw together after work. I called it New World Skillet because most of the ingredients (corn, squash, tomatoes) are native to the Americas. An interesting name encourages kids to give it a try (or at least provides some dinner conversation). We served over rice, but it could also be a burrito or enchilada filling. Actually, I had the leftovers for breakfast and that was pretty yummy too.

New World Skillet

1 tsp. vegetable oil

1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into about ½ inch dice

1 medium onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can corn

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (if you don’t rinse, everything turns gray, ick.)

28-oz can diced tomatoes

Chili powder, about 1 tsp or to taste

Oregano, about ½ tsp

Cumin, about ½ tsp or to taste

Tabasco sauce or similar, to taste (2 shakes is good for my kids.)

(optional) red pepper flakes, for adult diners, about ¼ tsp.

Salt and pepper

Heat oil in large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over medium or med-low heat. Add squash and sauté about 3-4 minutes. Add onion, chili powder, oregano, cumin and oregano. Cook a couple of minutes more and add garlic. Continue to cook until squash is soft. Add corn, reserving the liquid to add moisture to skillet if needed, beans, and tomatoes. Add optional red pepper flakes. Cover and cook about 10 minutes until flavors are blended. Taste and add Tabasco, salt and pepper. Cook another few minutes to blend flavors.

Serve over rice or with corn tortillas. Kids may want to add sour cream.

Serves 4.

The Ralph Sisters’ Fabulous Sausage Bread

The shout-out

Earlier this month our after-school care staff from Hephzibah hosted their fall potluck. It’s a great chance to get to meet some of the parents of the kids our kids see after school, to share wonderful food, and for the kids to use their craft time making the mini-gym look wonderful with handmade decorations, banners, and table covers. I love our Hephzibah staff – Melissa and Linda know my boys as well as any other adult in their lives after 6 years. We are so lucky to have all of these creative and energetic women and men in our kids’ lives.

The main event

I usually bring a vegetarian entrée or dessert. But this year we wanted to dazzle the crowd with one of the best potluck dishes I’ve ever had, my friend Lynn’s Sausage Bread. It’s addictively delicious, and predictably the two loaves we brought vanished with only bread-y scraps left behind. Tom volunteered to bake when my work schedule got hectic. My husband is the best.

Lynn gave me the recipe years ago, and I came across my slightly-battered printed copy recently. It’s called the Ralph Sisters' Sausage Bread and I haven’t asked her about these mysterious relatives because I like to imagine them as slightly-eccentric, slightly-whimsical ladies of a certain age who like a good time and never count calories.

Marginalia

I reproduce the recipe below as I received it, with Lynn’s notes (in blue.) An online friend who sadly died a few years ago, Maria G., added her own notes (in green). Tom's/my notes are in red. I love the way each cook brings their own thoughts and twists to a recipe. I have recipes with my grandmother or my great-aunt Verna’s or my mother-in-laws extra notes on them, and I notice as I flip through some of my cookbooks that I’m adding my own food marginalia that some day my kids may read. (Halve that waffle recipe. Add extra water to the dahl.)

The star of the show

With Lynn’s permission, the best (meat-containing category) appetizer/snack for buffet or potluck. You won’t have leftovers (but please don’t calculate the calories!)

The Ralph Sisters' Fabulous Sausage Bread 

Mix the following together in a HUGE bowl--add enough eggs to make the mix hold together:

2-1/2 lb Italian sausage, cooked thoroughly and chopped (Lynn - I put it through the food processor for a few pulses--also, portion note: I've made this with 3/4 to 1/2 this amount, with good results--you might want to play with it.) Tom yes, definitely reduce the sausage amount.
3-4 eggs
3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 lb shredded mozzarella (Lynn - see note above about sausage portion--you can easily make this with less cheese)
handful of parsley, chopped fine 

Make according to package directions, then split in half to rise in greased bowls: One package of bread mix

(Lynn: Note: the original recipe calls for Pillsbury Hot Roll Mix, which IMO is difficult to find in stores and makes a flatter loaf, but the Ralph sisters swear by it. I prefer a white bread mix originally made for bread machine, but made according to the "conventional oven" instructions on the side of the box. Again, you can experiment with this, either using your favorite bread recipe, some exotic box mix, or even premade bread dough from the grocer's case.) 

Tom – we used bread dough/pizza dough rounds from Tony’s Super Store, for local readers (you can also buy them at Turano bakery or Trader Joe’s.)

After dough has risen, roll each ball out in a large rectangle (about the size and shape of your average cutting board), taking care not to roll it out so thin the dough gets holes in it.

Then cover each rectangle (leaving about 1/4-inch or less margin not covered) with 1/2 sausage mixture.

Roll the sausage covered dough, starting at the short end of the rectangle like a jelly roll, and seal ends by moistening them, pinching them together and folding them under, then cover LOOSELY with aluminum foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes; Allow to bake unwrapped an additional 15 minutes, or until a nice golden brown. Slice and serve!

Tom - Good with dijon mustard!



Maria - I used Williams-Sonoma Parmesan and Tomato Basil bread mix. In making the sausage, I seasoned it with much finely diced onion, pressed garlic, aniseed, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper (to taste.) 

Chili Night (Big Molar-style Texas Chili)

It was a dark and windy October night, perfect for chili, when we gathered for the long-awaited chili cookoff. 

Mmm, Steam-ay

The moment of truth for the tales of neighborly chili prowess had arrived.

L and T made a mouth-watering white chicken chili

J and W made a Spanish-seasoned chili with hamburger and fresh garden peppers. Can chili taste like a garden? Yeah, MMM.

Apologies for lame photography - we were eager to get to the eating portion of the evening

Tom made his Texas Big Molar style beef chili and Big Molar-inspired beans. 

They were all fantastic. I hope to bring the other recipes for future posts, but here’s our chili contribution. This is a great combination chili if you have a vegetarian to serve – the meat-eaters can mix the beans and meat. Our kids just have the beans over rice. 

Big Molar – style Beef Chili

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium green pepper, chopped

2 pounds chuck roast, cut into smallish pieces

1 (14-ounce) can beef broth

1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon granulated onion

5 tablespoons chili powder, divided

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic (or 3 cloves fresh minced)

Salt to taste

Heat vegetable oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and cook until browned; drain fat (save for beans if desired.) Transfer the meat to a 5-quart stockpot or dutch oven. Cover with 1 inch or so of water. Heat to a boil and cook 30 minutes.

Add broth and tomato sauce, cook over medium-high heat until thickened, about 30 min. Stir in seasonings except garlic and salt. Reduce heat to simmer. Cook 30 min. Add garlic and salt and cook 30 minutes more.

Big Molar Inspired Beans

2 tablespoons olive oil or rendered fat from the beef, above

1 medium chopped onion

1 chopped bell pepper

1 can mild or hot green chiles

Tsp. paprika

2 tsp. granulated onion

2 Tablespoons chili powder

1 tsp black pepper

4 cloves minced garlic

2 cans red kidney beans, drained (or equivalent dried beans that have been soaked and cooked)

8 oz can tomato sauce

Heat cast iron skillet over low heat. Add oil or rendered beef fat, about 2 Tablespoons. Add chopped onion and bell pepper. Cook until vegetables are soft. Add green chiles. Add spices except for the garlic. Cook for a few minutes to allow flavors to blend.

Add minced garlic and red kidney beans, tomato sauce, and about ½ cup water or vegetable broth. Cook over low heat, covered, for about an hour.

Tonight we’re gathering again for soup and bread night. We’re cooking borscht and peach cobbler as I type. Mmm. Hate the shorter days of fall, but I do love the food. (recipes later! Off to the oven)