Borscht! And, Other Small Joyful Things.

My girlfriend Laura and I took a day trip to Great Barrington over the weekend. We went to GB primarily so we’d have 40 minutes each way of uninterrupted car time to talk. When it’s too cold to take a walk, I highly recommend a long drive with a friend for catching up. We popped into Scout House where I did a book event with the lovely Jane Larkworthy over the summer. They have beautiful things for your home, including a great book selection. I was waxing poetic about Tom Lake by Ann Patchett when Laura glanced down and excitedly saw Nothing to See Here on display and said I would love it, and boy, was she right! Loosely, it is about two former roommates and best friends Lillian and Madison, who were separated by a “boarding school scandal.” Years later, Madison reaches out to Lillian after not being in touch since said scandal and asks her to become a caretaker for her step-children, who periodically, spontaneously combust when they get worked up. You read that correctly - the children can burst into flames! It is not at all a novel I would have chosen on my own and I absolutely love it. Ironically, the author Kevin Wilson dedicated the book to… Ann Patchett…

Chad made fried chicken again (!) on Saturday, this time opting for the more traditional southern style. It was very good, but someone please save me from his new hobby!

He also playfully made what we now call Fargo Biscuits. If you’ve watched the season finale of Fargo with Juno Temple (she’s incredible), Jon Hamm and Jennifer Jason Lee, you’ll know what I mean. Biscuits and Bisquik aside, the show is exceptional, albeit pretty violent. But, I highly recommend it.

Fargo Biscuits

On a lighter note, I had a blast last week making a fun series on Instagram highlighting some of my favorite cookbooks. If you haven’t watched already, take a peek! The Silver Palate installment was a true highlight. I’ll be doing more of these in the future as people really seemed to connect with them. Please follow along, and also, please feel free to drop some of your favorite cookbooks in the comments. 

In other not surprising news, it’s been cold, rainy and gray here in Hudson for what seems like eternity. The weather often dictates what I want to cook and in this week’s case it’s a bowl of cozy borscht and it’s very good borscht at that. I’ve wanted to make borscht for years and because of you, I finally got around to it. After a lot of research, I landed on Elise Bauer’s recipe, which is quite good. Her recipes always work. She smartly roasts the beets, carrots and potatoes, before adding them to the soup, which brings out their sweetness. I made minimal modifications to suit my taste (acidity addict here), but I’m sure it would be just as good as written. If you can make it a day in advance, it only adds to the flavor and deepens the stew’s rich, ruby hue. 

I also bought Jaju perogies to serve alongside the soup. Chad insisted on frying up bits of bacon to sprinkle over the top of them like his grandmother Inga did. Who am I to argue? There was also ample amounts of sour cream and dill at the ready. 

I’ve mentioned this before, but I find it helpful to make other people’s recipes on occasion, especially when I’m in a creative rut (ahem, January). It feels therapeutic to follow someone else's trusted directions for a change and takes the pressure off of me trying to reinvent the wheel. It also feels nice to give someone else a little shine. 

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Borscht

Adapted from Elise Bauer’s recipe on Simply Recipes

Serves 6 to 8

Time 2 hours

INGREDIENTS 

1 pound beef stew meat, excess fat trimmed

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 

1 tablespoon neutral oil such as canola or vegetable 

1 large onion, chopped 

8 cups beef broth or beef stock, divided - I used the Better than Bouillon Roasted Beef flavor 

2 tablespoons olive oil 

3 large beets, peeled and chopped

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

1 large russet potato, peeled and cut into ½ -inch cubes

2 cups thinly sliced cabbage

¼ cup good quality white wine vinegar, plus more to taste 

Sour cream and dill for serving 

METHOD

Season the meat well with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, heat the vegetable oil overy medium heat. When it shimmers, add the meat, working in batches if needed so you don’t crowd the pan. Brown on all sides, about 7 to 10 minutes total. 

Add the onions and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. 

Add 4 cups of the beef broth or water and BTB over the beef and onions in the pot. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook until the meat is tender and falling apart, about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.

Toss the beets and carrots with two tablespoons of the olive oil and spread them out in a single layer on a sheet pan and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 15 minutes. 

Toss the potatoes with the remaining olive oil and season with salt. Make room for them on the sheet pan, and roast everything for an additional 15 minutes.

Add the remaining broth, carrots, beets, potato and the cabbage to the Dutch oven with the meat and onions. Bring to a simmer, and cook for another 15 minutes or so, until the cabbage has softened. 

Off the heat, stir in the vinegar and taste. Adjust seasonings with more salt as needed. Ladle into bowls and top with sour cream and dill and a few pinches of flaky salt. Pass vinegar at the table for those like me who like their face to pucker.

Borscht

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That’s it, we’re done here for the week!

If you make the borscht, let me know. If you take a long drive with a friend, let me know. If you feel like sharing anything else, please do. 

With love,

Colu x