BEAUTIFUL SOUP (VEGETABLE SOUP WITH BEETS, DILL AND ORANGE ZEST)

Beautiful Soup (Vegetable Soup With Beets, Dill and Orange Zest) image

This is a sweet and buttery tomato-onion soup that evolved, many years ago, toward a kind of borscht, but stopped short. Borscht tastes too earthy for my palate. Tomatoes and orange keep the flavor a bit brighter and more acidic. The name comes from the colors: orange carrots, carnelian tomatoes, magenta beets. I serve it at home, at least twice each winter, with snow-white dollops of sour cream floating on top. It looks wonderful, tastes good, and is very healthful. And without my needing to say a word about mincing or dicing, it teaches my children about the satisfaction of a job well done.

Provided by Celia Barbour

Categories dinner, soups and stews, appetizer, main course, side dish

Time 1h15m

Yield 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 14

Ingredients

6 tablespoons butter or 3 tablespoons butter and 3 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium onions, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 small beets, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
4 to 5 medium carrots, cut into 1/2- inch dice
4 stalks celery, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 medium celery root, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
3/4 cup chopped dill
2 quarts beef or chicken stock
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes with their juice
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Sour cream, for garnish
Dark whole wheat sour bread or other hearty bread, for serving

Steps:

Place flameproof casserole or other deep, wide pan over low heat and add butter or butter-oil mixture. When butter has melted, add onion and garlic; sauté until soft but not browned.
Increase heat to medium-high and add beets, carrots, celery, celery root and half the dill. Sauté, adjusting heat as needed, until vegetables have released their liquid, dried and start to turn golden but not brown, about 20 minutes.
Add stock and tomatoes with their juice, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook until vegetables are soft, about 45 minutes. Add orange zest and juice, and remaining dill. Season with salt and pepper to taste. To serve, ladle into bowls and top each with a dollop of sour cream. Serve with hunks of bread.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 376, UnsaturatedFat 12 grams, Carbohydrate 34 grams, Fat 23 grams, Fiber 7 grams, Protein 12 grams, SaturatedFat 9 grams, Sodium 1537 milligrams, Sugar 17 grams, TransFat 0 grams