Ontario Vegetable Borscht, Vegetarian and Gluten Free

"Soup is the song of the hearth... and the home." Louis P. De Guoy

Hello followers, dug yourselves out yet?! Ha!
This blog marks the end of 'Soup Month' and today's recipe is for one of my family's favourites, borscht. My Grandma has a Ukrainian background, so we have always enjoyed such traditional foods as cabbage rolls, perogies and today's soup, borscht. Always homemade, of course, with the family recipes being passed down from my Great Grandmother Myslitsky. Well, today's soup recipe comes to us from my Uncle Jeff, who decided to break with tradition this past Christmas Eve. You see, every year we are invited out to my Aunt Deb and Uncle Jeff's house for a pre Christmas dinner buffet. They go all out and what better way for me to spend my birthday, then to be gathered with the Visheau clan out in Dundas! Who needs a restaurant when one is treated to Prime Rib, delicious soups, seasonal veggies, fresh winter salads and a lovely selection of cheeses. Yum! My Uncle Jeff has always loved to cook and not a lot of people know this, but he used to have a cooking show! That's right, it was called 'Cookin' with Jeff' and was shot exclusively for our family audience, up at the cottage in Muskoka. Almost every morning the show would start while making breakfast and I was always so excited to be my Uncle's Executive Sous Chef! Hmm, looking back, those moments could have been one of the reasons why I got into cooking in the first place... Anyhoo, this soup was so good that I decided to send out a request and my Cousin Robyn graciously emailed me the recipe. Thanks, again!

Simple and Tasty Recipe:

Ontario Vegetable Borscht, Uncle Jeff's
(serves 6 to 8)

1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, rough chop
1 leek, white part only, rough chop
1 clove garlic, rough chop
3 medium beets, peeled and rough chop
1 potato, peeled and rough chop
1 carrot, peeled and rough chop
1 cup cabbage, rough chop
1750 ml vegetable stock
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 tbsp fresh dill, rough chop (plus extra for garnish)
sour cream (for garnish)

.in a large pot, heat the oil on medium low heat, add in the onion, garlic and leek, stir occasionally and cook for 10 mins
.add in the remainder of the ingredients (except for the garnishes) and bring to a boil, skim off foam
.reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, until the veggies are el dente
.adjust seasoning, ladle into bowls and garnish with a dollop of sour cream and dill, smachnoho!

Uber delicious and the colour is amazing! What a fantastic way to end a month of easy to make, seasonal soups! Now, you all might be wondering what culinary adventures are on the horizon. Well, next Wednesday I am catering an event at the 'Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art' (or 'MOCCA' for short), in Toronto. I have planned a menu of three hors d'oeuvres, two pasta dishes for the main along with greens and bread, and three desserts to finish. My friend Cathy is my Sous Chef for the evening and with her by my side, I know we can pull it off without a hitch (knock on wood, fingers crossed, etc.!)! I will blog about the event next week and along with photos, I might even post a recipe or two! So, my followers have a fantastic weekend and make some soup, for goodness sake! Bye for now!