Four Nights A Week

We have a bit of an HVAC issue in our condo currently, meaning we have no air conditioning on some fairly warm almost-summer days. Living in a renovated brick mill building, the sun has warmed up the brick walls and sills, and so, I have been in search of a dinner-time cool soup.

On one of our days of respite, I managed to roast the golden beets we received in our Clark Farm CSA share, and put those in the fridge for “later”. I’ve been roasting beets with their skins on, and the method I’ll quote below is readily found across the web. It also saves me from trying to peel raw beets of any color and avoiding the telltale finger and hand discoloration.

This soup was a stove top recipe. The first night we consumed it warm(ish); on the redo (leftover night!), the soup which was refrigerated overnight had the advantage of allowing individual ingredients to blend subtly. Also, as a cold soup, the advantage of a chilled soup for dinner in a very warm condo meant we could eat something homemade.

Roasting Beets

Preheat oven to 400 F. A sheet pan with sides is the best way to “contain” the beets. Have foil squares ready for wrapping the beets individually. (Sometimes I line the sheet pan with foil and then seal the beets in with foil on top of the pan.

Wash/scrub the beets, leaving the skins intact. I trim the beets to within an inch of the top, but generally leave the bottom as is.

Rub a bit of olive oil on each beet and season with salt and pepper.

Roast for about 60 minutes, testing for doneness with a skewer.

Allow the beets to cool in the packets before removing skins. This can generally be done with a paper towel or by slipping a paring knife under the loose skin and pulling it away.

Use or store as needed.

Roasted Beet Soup

Ingredients

• About a pound of pre-roasted beets
• Shallot (or onion)
• Garlic of some type (I used our CSA share green garlic here)
• Seasonings: Salt and pepper, add herbs like thyme if you wish
• About 2 cups of vegetable broth

Method

1. Sauté the shallots and garlic in olive oil or butter, but don’t let them brown. (about 5 minutes)
2. Add the roasted beets
3. Add liquid (vegetable broth), salt, and pepper and other flavorings/herbs
4. Heat gently to rewarm the beets if they’ve been refrigerated. It doesn’t need to be boiling, but a nice warm temperature will help blend the flavors
5. Off heat, use a hand blender to make everything very smooth. Since the beets were pre-roasted, this should not be too difficult. If the soup seems too thick for your liking, simply add more liquid.
6. If serving warm: dish it up, add yogurt or sour cream and garnish as you wish. For a cold dish, put the soup in a container and refrigerate several hours (or overnight). Serve as you wish.