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Farmer Sausage Borscht for a Crowd



This is another hearty thick soup that I made for our small church group. It is both economical and perfect to pair with some buns and a salad. You will need a large stock pot that holds 12 liters. It can be made a day in advance, refrigerated and then warmed very slowly over low heat so as to avoid scorching the bottom.
  • 1 1/2 rings smoked farmer sausage or 3 pounds of other smoked mild sausage
  • 2 jumbo onions diced fine
  • 12 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 10 carrots, peeled and sliced
  • 2 - 28 ounce cans diced tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons "Better than Bouillon" vegetable base (look by the bouillon cubes)
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 2 chili peppers diced fine (I used fresh but you can use 2 teaspoons of dried chili peppers)
  • 2 medium cabbages, quartered and sliced about 1/4 inch thick
  • 1 packet of fresh dill weed (in the produce section) chopped fine
  1. Brown the farmer sausage and onion in your very large stock pot until nicely browned.
  2. Add 2 cups of water to de-glaze the bottom of the pot and simmer for 10 minutes while you prepare vegetables.
  3. Add all the rest of the vegetables and seasonings but the cabbage and dill weed in order.
  4. Stir well.
  5. Add the cabbage last,  filling your pot up two inches from the top.
  6. Add water to come level with the top of the cabbage.
  7. Bring to a boil and add in the chopped dill weed.
  8. Simmer  and stir occasionally on low heat for 4 hours.
Serves 25

28 comments:

  1. This sounds so tasty! Thank you for the recipe.Enjoy your weekend.

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  2. Looks and sounds great. Good for a cool wet day, which is what we have here!

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  3. I need to get more farmers sausage - next trip to Abbotsford. Question for you. Is the dill weed the kind used for pickling or the bunch of baby dill used in salads, etc. My Mom always made borscht with the pickling kind so I want to clarify.
    Lucky people who get to see your cooking demonstrations this weekend. You girls are some busy!

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  4. Beth ..good question. I meant the weed kind that is used in salads. But. .of course if you have dill in your garden for pickling in the summer, that is the best, fresh and plentiful. Just don't chop the stalks up fine. .tie them together and stick in the soup.

    Would love to see you in the crowd today. .thanks for all the encouragement.

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  5. I love these "cook for a crowd" recipes you ladies have! This one looks so delicious. Can't wait to hear all about your weekend - wish I could be there.....have fun!

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  6. This looks fantastic. I want some now. My tongue just tingles imagining the tart sweet flavour of borscht with cabbage. I have those dishes too. The bronze colour and rustic stoneware is a perfect complement to borscht.

    Sharon

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  7. oh that sounds so good...I'll be making just a smaller batch..not cooking for a crowd..Thanks for the recipe..

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  8. Your soup sounds yummy...I am going to try it soon, but how do you cut up the farmer sausage for the soup? and I don't care for anything even a little spicy...could I substitute a little chili powder for the chilis? thanks...
    love your recipes!!!

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  9. Your soup sounds yummy...I am going to try it soon, but how do you cut up the farmer sausage for the soup? and I don't care for anything even a little spicy...could I substitute a little chili powder for the chilis? thanks...
    love your recipes!!!

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  10. Can't wait to make this! Yum! Thanks for sharing.

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  11. Twyla, I cut the farmer sausage into long pieces and then quarter them and slice them into about 1/3 inch slices.
    As for the spicy part. I don't think I would add chili powder. Rather just add a pinch of chili peppers, it won't be that hot and you can always add a squeeze of ketchup to pump up the flavour then.

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  12. I made this soup yesterday afternoon, and it was GREAT ! It is a hardy soup with a really rich flavour. Definitely a keeper for this Frozen Canadian and her family !

    Thank you so much for sharing.

    Lynn

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  13. thanks so much Lovella!!!

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  14. That looks fantastic, I love soup.

    Any ideas for a substitute for Better than Boullion? It contains soy, which we can't have (daughter is allergic.)

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  15. Anne, I am not sure which products would have soy. Any boullion that you normally use is going to work just fine.

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  16. The only bouillon we can use comes in chicken or beef only. There is a gravy browning/base that is mostly vegetable extract. Hmm, I wonder which would do better.

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  17. Wonderful to have some crowd recipes for a bigger family! :)

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  18. did you mean 28 oz cans tomatoes? or 48? I don't recall seeing 48 oz cans at the grocery store.


    Eve

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  19. Eve ..thank you!! You are right. .it is 28 ounce cans of tomatoes.

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  20. I have a 6 litre pot. Can one 1/2 the recipe?

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  21. Just discovered your web site thanks to someone serving me this soup for lunch - great company, great soup, and great web site!

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  22. Thank you for this wonderful recipe! I made half a recipe, and it was still a lot of soup! We enjoyed it and had lots to share. Some to a neighbor spending time at the hospital with an ill parent, some to my own aging, widowed mom, and some to a couple of teacher friends in a week when they are writing report cards. What great fun to bless others with a jar of home cooked soup! :)

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  23. Question: I'm not much of a cook, but could I do this in a slow cooker instead of on the stove? If yes, how many hours on low setting or high setting would you recommend? I'm not sure how cabbage fairs in a slow cooker.

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  24. A slowcooker would work really well for Borscht. I am assuming you would halve this recipe. (unless you have a very huge slow cooker).
    I would do it for 8 hours. Start it on high until it simmers and then turn it down.

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  25. I have just found this blog. I was looking for a recipe for puffed wheat cake(which I found) but looked at the recipe for cabbage borcht. It brought tears to my eyes. Such a wonderful memory of visiting my Mennonite Mother-in-law in Manitoba. My family then lived in B.C. but when we arrived home our supper was always Borcht and Mom's wonderful homemade buns. I really miss her. Thanks for the memory.

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  26. awesome. needed it for a project
    thanks!

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  27. cant find how much it serves but looks good?

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    Replies
    1. Twelve litres is about 48 cups so I'd say it serves 20-25 people.

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