Fun with Beetroots - Part 2: Beetroot soup

So, here is the second recipe with beetroots. It was a bit inspired by Borscht, but I didn't want to make such a complicated dish today. I was more thinking of something really quick and simple but warming, especially with nasty weather like this. I still had one cooked beetroot and a couple of potatoes from yesterdays dinner. So, this soup is what I came up with:

Ingredients:

• one cooked beetroot (medium size, two small ones otherwise)
• 2 boiled potatoes
• 1 leek, trimmed, only the white part
• 500 ml beef stock
• 100 ml cream
• 2 tbsp soured cream
• pepper

And how I made it:

• cut the beetroot and the potatoes into small chunks
• simmer in the stock for 15 mins, until soft
• now, blend everything (be careful with splashes, otherwise everything gets a nice pink colour!)
• with the cream, there are two options - easy one is, just add and stir through, second one is whip the cream and then add carefully to the soup, gives a lighter texture, more like a foam
• before serving add soured cream and pepper

That's it - simple as that. Believe me, the soup has a vivid pink colour, but the picture won't bring it out (due to the bad light from outside....)

Fun with Beetroots - Part 1: Red Hering Salad

My last post has been some time ago, so I thought I update you on my experiences with beetroot. As some of you know, each week I receive a "surprise vegetable&fruit box" and this time it included two beetroots. The first idea that sprang to my mind was a raw beet root carpaccio, the second was roasted beets. However, this is exactly what I have done the last two times with beet roots. So here is something else, two simple recipes, starting with a fabulous red hering salad.



Ingredients:

• 4 large hering filets (either in brine or in oil, they should be salty)
• 1 apple, I use Braeburn here, but anything similiar will do, just shouldn't be too sweet
• 1 onion
• 1 cooked beetroot (cook for 20 mins and then peel)
• 100 g yoghurt
• 100 g soured cream
• 100 g Schmand (I don't know if there is an english equivalent, i would just double the amount of soured cream)
• salt, black pepper and a pinch of sugar

The assembly

• cut the fish, the beetroot and the apple into dice
• cut the onion into halves and then finely slice
• mix everything in a bowl, than add the dairy products
• add the spices to your taste
• put in the refrigerator for at least half an hour

That's it, optionally you can also chop in a boiled egg, I do prefer it on the side though. Serve with dark rye bread, preferably with Pumpernickl, if you can get hold of it!

Quick Pear & Blue Cheese Tarte

Happy New Year Everyone! I hope you enjoyed the festive season as much as I did and your start into 2012 was fabulous. I certainly had (actually still have) a very relaxing break and now I am looking forward to going back to work (yes, really!)

As first post for the new year, I chose this very quick, adaptable and yummy recipe using ready-made puff pastry.




Ingredients:

• puff pastry (1 pack or as much as you like)
• 1 small or half a large pear (preferably a bit sour and with crunch, not too sweet)
• blue cheese to your liking (I used a creamy gorgonzola but I guess almost every blue cheese would do)
• soured cream
• roughly chopped walnuts
• parsley, pepper

How to make it:

• roll out the puff pastry, 1 cm from the edges, cut lines parallel to the edges with a sharp knife, but don't pierce the dough (this will give you slighty higher risen edges of your tarte, so the filling won't escape)
• cover the inner box with soured cream (generous portion), add the sliced pears, sprinkle the walnuts and crumble blue cheese over
• make sure the rim is still dry, otherwise it won't rise
• bake in a preaheat oven at 150 °C (no fan) for roughly 15-20 mins (but this depends on the cheese you use!)
• sprinkle with parsley and freshly ground black pepper

That's it. You might also want to try different toppings, some of my favorites are figs and parma ham, smoked salmon and spring onions or chickenbreast and black olives.