Beet the cold with local vegetable borscht

One of my favourite parts about the fall (and there are lots of things to love about fall in Whitehorse) is From The Ground Up, a fundraiser where Yukon students fan out across the community to sell big cardboard boxes full of local potatoes, carrots, beets and unreasonably large heads of cabbage.

The annual ritual of trekking to a local school to pick up 25 pounds of vegetables – then trying to use them up without resorting to canning – is a great reminder of how tasty and healthy these root vegetables are. It goes without saying that it's also important to support local farmers, so this is a win-win. My only regret is that the beets and carrots come with their tasty salad greens removed.

This year my partner and I each bought a box and our house is swimming with hearty potential. My hands-down favourite for a cold day is a classic Polish borsht that combines some of every vegetable in the box into a delicious sweet-and-savoury soup. If you hunt, or are lucky enough to be friends with someone who does, a few smoked bison sausages give the soup amazing woody flavour.

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School Fundraiser Borsht

Prep time: 30 mins / Cook time: 70 mins

Drop the beets into this filling and tasty fall classic

1 pound smoked bison sausage (or your favourite smokie), cut into small medallions

3 medium beets, peeled and shredded

3 carrots, scrubbed and shredded

3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/2 medium head (or 1/4 of your cardboard box head) cabbage, shredded

8 oz. diced tomatoes

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

6 oz. tomato paste

1/2 cup water

5 cloves, ground

4 cloves minced garlic

1 tsp sugar

• In a large stockpot, bring 2 L water to a boil. Add sausage and return to a boil.

• Add beets to water. Simmer until they have lost their colour, about 30 minutes.

• Add carrots and potatoes. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Add cabbage and diced tomatoes.

• Heat oil in a skillet. Add onion and cook on medium-low heat until translucent. Add tomato paste and water. Combine, add cloves and garlic, and add mixture to pot.

• Remove soup from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Season with sugar, salt, and pepper.

• Serve with Greek yogurt and dill and a hearty piece of rye bread.