Barszcz

Annie is still learning all about different countries at school.

A few weeks ago we had South African week.

I went in and made Malva Pudding, which I will post about one day.

I had a fabulous time with her class.

You can read all about it here.

I have not been feeling so confident with Poland week, however.

Even though I was born in Poland, I grew up in South Africa.

My parents brought me up in a Polish household, but over the years, they too became more South African and less Polish.

My mother has passed away.

My father is in South Africa.

I don't have a direct connection to Poland at the moment.

So I have not volunteered to come and talk about Poland.

I won't know what to say.

I only have the essence of Poland in my heart.

And in the traditions that we follow.

If my father was here, I would have sent him to talk all about Poland.

He would have wonderful stories to tell the children.

And I don't feel confident enough to go and cook with the children.

I love Polish food.

But I feel somewhat intimidated by it.

It's not something I cook every day.

And every recipe seems to be quite labour intensive.

So I volunteered to make something at home and bring it in.

I decided to make Barszcz. 

The most traditional Polish soup.

We always have it at Christmas.

I never make it because I think that it's too difficult.

But, I had to tap into those Polish roots and make magic.

So, today, I made Barszcz.

And I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to make.

So easy that I will share the recipe.

Because if you like beetroot, you will love it.

It is more of a Winter dish.

But it's still cold enough over here for us to enjoy it.

We eat it at Christmas in the middle of Summer, sweating it out because we try and replicate the cold Christmas in Poland!!

Here is the recipe.

Try it out.

Ingredients

1 kg of beets

1 tablespoon of salt

2 litres of vegetable stock (or chicken or meat if you prefer)

2 tablespoons of vinegar

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Lemon juice

Sugar

Chopped fresh dill or parsley

Method

Scrub and rinse beets clean; rinse with cold water. Leave roots, 1 to 2 inches stem, and skin intact. Place whole beets in a large saucepan. Add salt and enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover with a tight fitting lid; reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until tender, 1 hour. Remove beets from liquid. Let cool, then peel.

Heat stock in a large saucepan. Slice or grate beets; add to stock. Simmer, uncovered, over low heat for 30 minutes. Stir vinegar and pepper into beet mixture. Season with lemon juice and sugar to taste. Simmer over low heat for 1 hour; do not boil.

Strain into a serving tureen. Serve steaming hot. Garnish with dill or parsley.