Vegetarian Borscht

01

Step 1

Start by warming a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion, and cook them together, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens and becomes translucent—this usually takes about five minutes. Once that's done, set the mixture aside.

02

Step 2

Next, heat the remaining three tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Toss in the celery, carrots, bell pepper, beets (including the greens), whole tomatoes, diced tomatoes, potatoes, Swiss chard, and the onion mixture you just cooked. Stir everything together and cook until the Swiss chard starts to wilt, which should take between 4 and 8 minutes.

03

Step 3

Pour in the vegetable broth and water, then add the dill, salt, and pepper. Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer gently for about an hour.

04

Step 4

After simmering, scoop out half of the beets along with some of the broth and transfer them to a blender—but don’t fill it more than halfway. To keep things safe, hold the blender lid down with a folded kitchen towel. Start blending with a few quick pulses to get things moving, then puree until smooth. Add the tofu to the blender and blend again until everything is well combined and creamy.

05

Step 5

Pour the tofu-beet mixture back into the pot and let the soup simmer some more, stirring occasionally, until it thickens and reduces by about a third—this will take roughly another hour.

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Step 6

You can enjoy the soup warm or chilled, whichever you prefer. Either way, it’s delicious!