Growing up in Ukraine, San Francisco chef and blogger Anna Voloshyna ate a bright pink, kefir-based cold borscht called kholodnyk — kholod means cold in Ukrainian — to cool off during the scorching-hot days of summer.
Voloshyna’s version, featured in her forthcoming debut cookbook, “Budmo! Recipes from a Ukrainian Kitchen” (Rizzoli, $40), includes crisp radishes and Persian cucumbers, dill, parsley and extra-virgin olive oil for added color and texture. The cookbook comes out Sept. 27.
Cold Borscht
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
2 medium red beets, about 12 ounces total weight
5 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
3 cups plain kefir or buttermilk
2 medium Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced, divided use
3 medium radishes, thinly sliced, divided use
¼ cup finely chopped fresh dill and flat-leaf parsley, in equal parts, plus more for serving
Distilled water, chilled, if needed for thinning
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 green onions, green part only, thinly sliced
½ cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
Extra-virgin olive oil, for serving
DIRECTIONS
In a medium saucepan, combine the beets with water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the beets are easily pierced with a knife, 30 to 40 minutes. Drain the beets and let them sit for about 10 minutes. When they are cool enough to handle, peel them and then coarsely grate them. Return them to the pot.
Coarsely grate two of the eggs and add them to the beets. Add the kefir, about half each of the cucumbers and radishes (reserve the remainder for finishing the soup), and the dill and parsley. Mix together everything with a spoon and then add a bit of the chilled water, if the mixture is too thick. It should be the consistency of a yogurt soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover the pot and chill for at least 30 minutes or for up to 2 hours before serving.
When ready to serve, halve the remaining three eggs lengthwise. Ladle the soup into bowls. Top each serving with some of the remaining cucumbers and radishes, the green onions, an egg half, a dollop of yogurt, some dill and parsley, and a generous drizzle of oil. The soup needs to be eaten very cold, right from the fridge. It tastes best the day it is made.
— Anna Voloshyna, “Budmo! Recipes from a Ukrainian Kitchen” (Rizzoli; $40)
