Spiced Golden Beet Soup with Sumac
Winter is the season for soups- there's no discussion there. But does it always have to be the same old thing? Comfort food does not have to be one of those age-old, well known and loved dishes after all... much as we love them!
No, any soup that gives you a warm and comfy feeling is a great comfort food- even if it is new and a little bit different... like this one!
Made from beautiful yellow golden beets, this has a sweet and earthy flavor, but with the addition of Arabic "chorba" spices, ginger and chicken broth and finished with a good pinch of tangy sumac, this makes for a bright and flavorful change on a cold a dreary night!
To make 2 nice bowl of soup, you will need 3 golden beets (or one huge one and a regular sized one, haha!), a half stalk of celery, about 1" of fresh ginger, 2-3 Spring onions, a little fresh parsley, 1 tablespoon of chorba spice and about 1 teaspoon of sumac.
Dare to be different is what I say! There are lots of classic dishes out there. but guess what? They have always been there and they will still be there tomorrow! Go make something different today- it is so much more fun!
Peel the beets and chop them coarsely- they cook relatively quickly and are going to be puréed anyway. Chop up the onions, ginger and celery more finely, as you are going to begin by frying them together to get their flavors to develop more richly.
And there they are- all in the saucepan with a little olive oil, gently becoming a little bit brown together.
Next, add the beets, the chorba spice and the celery leaves, season with salt and pepper and give them a good stir.
Top up the beets with a mix of half chicken stock and half water- you don't want to overpower their own flavor. In fact, you want to emphasize it, so add a good pinch of sugar as well as salt when you season the stock. Strangely enough and as sweet as they are, golden beets can take on a slightly bitter character when cooked- so that sugar will help to keep things balanced nicely.
Let them simmer away for 15-20 minutes on a low flame and you are almost done!
After 20 minutes, the beets will be soft and ready to be blended together, absorbing all of that yummy stock and becoming a thick and velvety consistency- ready to be served-up, garnished and enjoyed!
Add a good sprinkle of tangy sumac, a few thin slices of Spring onion and a sprig of parsley to make it more pretty and delicious- and get ready for something new!
This has a similar earthy flavor to that of red beetroot, but this sure isn't Borscht! Like I said- you CAN go ahead and try something new! If you have good, basic ingredients- how far wrong can you go? Be brave and enjoy!
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