Hello and thanks for stopping by my new little home on the interwebs. Those who know me already know that I'm happiest when I'm cooking. I love exploring other cultures through their food traditions, celebrating my own southern U.S. roots, and fiddling around to create my own recipes. My current kitchen passions are all things sourdough, cheesemaking, and lacto-fermented vegetables.
Speaking of lacto-fermented vegetables, I have two half-gallon mason jars full of beet kvas fermenting on my kitchen counter. Beet kvas is an old eastern European lactic fermented beverage that is refreshing and full of probiotics for health. Beet lovers will enjoy it, others will tolerate it. Later today, I'm going to incorporate some of my kvas into some lovely borscht.
Here is my recipe for kvas:
3 medium beets, preferable with a bit of the tops still attached
1 T plus 1 t salt (the less processed, the better)
1/2 gallon filtered water
A few inches of fresh ginger root, peeled.
Wash the beets, but don't peel them. Cut them into chunks, including a few inches of the tops. Don't get overly-enthusiastic and grate the beets. They contain sufficient sugar that your ferment will become positively alcoholic if you do!
Place the beets and ginger into a 1/2 gallon jar, or 2 quart jars.
Fill with filtered water and cover.
Let sit at room temperature for at least days, until it's as tart as you like it. I like mine best after a minimum of five days. When it's nicely tart to your taste, pour the liquid off into another container and refrigerate. You can refill the original container with more filtered water for a second fermentation, which won't be quite as strong as the first. When that's done, you can use the beet chunks just as you would pickled beets, because that's what they are.
Here's my recipe for borscht:
4 medium beets, washed, unpeeled, diced
Greens from the beets, washed and cut chiffonade
If you can't find beets with their leaves, use red or green cabbage or any other sturdy leafy green vegetable.
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery sticks, diced
1 onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic (optional)
1 T butter, oil, or bacon fat
1/2 cup V8 juice, tomato juice, or tomato puree
2 bay leaves
Fresh dill to taste
6 cups stock or water
1 1/4 + 2t cups beet kvas
2 slices stale pumpernickel bread, pulverized to crumbs
salt and pepper to taste
sour cream, for garnish
sprigs of fresh dill, for garnish
1) Soak the pumpernickel in the 2 tablespoons of kvas, set aside for later.
2) Heat the butter, oil, or bacon fat in a large pot over medium heat
3) Add the onion and saute until lightly browned
4) Add the carrots, beets, celery and garlic to the pot and saute for a few minutes.
5) Add the V8, tomato juice, or tomato puree and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about 5 minutes.
6) Add the bay leaf and dill, and pour in the stock (or water).
7) Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the vegetables are soft, about 30 minutes.
(If using cabbage instead of beet greens, add them now, if using beet greens, add them when the beets are just fork-tender)
8) Add the kvas-soaked bread crumbs and the kvas
9) Taste and adjust seasoning
10) Serve garnished with a dollop of sour cream topped with a sprig of dill.
