When home economist Maria Depenweiller was developing this recipe, she wanted to create a dish that was nutrient rich and contained the particular flavours she enjoyed. This borscht recipe is meatless, but full of flavourful vegetables along with garlic, lima beans, parsley and caraway seeds.

Borscht

One serving = 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

1/2 lb small beets (approx. 4–5; see note)
2 tbsp canola oil
1 onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 medium potatoes, scrubbed well, cubed and rinsed to remove excess starch
3 celery stalks with leaves, chopped
2 carrots, scrubbed well, finely chopped or julienned into matchstick pieces no longer than 1 inch
1/4 small cabbage, shredded into slivers no longer than 1 inch
8 cups no-salt-added vegetable broth (or if you aren’t a vegetarian use beef broth)
1 bay leaf
1 tsp caraway seeds
1 tsp dried basil leaves
1 tsp dried sage leaves
1/2 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
One 19-oz can lima beans, well rinsed and drained or frozen
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp balsamic or apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp iodized salt

Method:

1. Rinse beets under cold running water. Trim any green ends and place unpeeled beets in a medium saucepan. Cover with water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover with a lid and simmer until tender, about 30-35 minutes. Drain. When cool to the touch, peel and cube, set aside.

2. In a large soup pot over medium heat, add oil, onion and garlic, saute for 3-4 minutes or until softened but not browned.

3. Add potatoes, celery, carrots and cabbage and saute for 1 minute. Add stock, bay leaf, caraway seeds, basil, sage, pepper and stir until combined. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to simmer, cooking for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

4. Remove bay leaf, then add lima beans, parsley, vinegar and reserved beets. Bring back to a boil, then reduce to simmer. When the soup is heated through, serve. Soup can be made the day before. Flavour improves when refrigerated and reheated the next day.

Note: To avoid beet-red fingertips, peel and cut cooked beets wearing rubber gloves. Cut into cubes on waxed or parchment paper to avoid staining the cutting board. In a hurry? Go ahead and use 4-5 small canned beets.

Per serving (1 1/2 cups): 175 Calories, 4 g Total Fat, 0.4 g Saturated Fat, 0.1 Trans Fat, 411 mg Sodium, 31.8 g Carbohydrate, 5.3 g Fibre, 10.2 g Sugars, 0 g added sugars, 5.2 g Protein