Beetroot Soup with Goat's Cheese

Last night we celebrated K's birthday by inviting my parents and his mum and auntie over for a dinner. We started with this bright and nourishing beetroot soup, followed with a filling boeuf bourgoignon to please my dad (he did enjoy the beetroot & ginger cake he was served last time he visited, but he was still disappointed that there was no 'proper food' last time). We then entertained our dear guests with Piña Colada Espuma (second helpings for all the ladies, and if my dad hadn't been the designated driver, he would have probably helped himself to the seconds, too), and finished with a cup of coffee and a fancy peach souffle made by the birthday boy himself. A very enjoyable evening indeed..

I wrote about a beetroot soup only recently (Vegetarian Borscht, September 2007), but this is totally different, and just as nice. The recipe is straight off the Finnish Ruokala.tv site - Punajuuri-vuohenjuustokeitto* - the only difference is that I weighed the parsnip and celeriac to make the recipe more 'exact'. Not that it's necessary here, so if you wish, just play around with the amounts of various root vegetables in the soup. Also, the original recipe suggests you crumble the goat's cheese into the soup to make it more creamy, but I had bought a wrong goat's cheese for that purpose, so I just sliced the cheese and placed on top of the soup.

Maarja Sloveenias tegi ka seda peedisuppi ja kiitis heaks. Loe lähemalt siit.

Beetroot Soup with Goat's Cheese
(Peedi-kitsejuustusupp)
Serves 4-6



1 onion, finely chopped
olive oil
300 grams raw beetroot
50 grams raw parsnip
50 grams raw celeriac/root celery
1 Litre vegetable stock (I used 4 tsp Marigold vegetable bouillon and hot water)
100 grams soft goat's cheese, crumbled (or goat's cheese with rind, sliced)
salt
coarsely ground black pepper
fresh parsley, chopped

Peel the onion and chop finely.
Peel the beets, celeriac and parsley, and chop finely or grate coarsely.
Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan, add the onion and saute for about 7-8 minutes, until it starts to soften. Add the beets, celeriac and parsnip and heat for a few minutes, stirring every now and then.
Add the hot bouillon, reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 20-25 minutes, until vegetables are softened.
Cool a little, then process with immersion blender until smooth. Add the crumbled goat's cheese (reserve some for garnishing), season with salt and pepper.
Divide into small soup bowls, garnish with extra cheese and some herbs.

* Kui see retsept Eesti lugejatele tuttav tundub, siis tõesti on tegemist sama supiga, mida Angeelika Kang tegi esmaspäevases Terevisioonis ja mille retsept ilmus viimases Oma Maitse numbris. Aga meil oli menüü juba eelmisel nädalal paigas, nii et jäin oma esialgsele supivalikule kindlaks :)