Tag Archive for cold summer soup

Nina’s Yummy Holodnick Soup

Adam and I are blessed to have our dear friend, Nina Blinkova and her three children, visiting us from Federal Way, Washington this week.  Today we had a very busy and fun day at the US Space and Rocket Center – the number one tourist attraction in Alabama.  We were practically the last people to leave the site, so we were really hungry at suppertime.   Hurray!  Nina came to the rescue!  She made a very delicious soup that did not take long to make and was very nutritious and our appetite was deeply satisfied.

Byelorussians, like Nina, are known for their supreme storytelling abilities.  There is a story behind the soup recipe I am about to share with you.  When Nina lived in a small village in Latvia, her family would make this cold soup in the summer with whatever vegetables they had in the garden.  One of Nina’s duties was to milk the cows.  Milk would be left out in the warm sun and would become buttermilk, and used in this soup.  Nina reminisced, “There was this ‘weird cow’ I had to milk….she would put her back hoof in the pail of milk just as we finished milking her.  Well, my Dad solved this problem.  Dad tied-up the cow’s front hoof, so if she put her back hoof in the pail, she would fall.  My Dad’s cleverness stopped her from the bad back hoof behavior!”

Enjoy Nina’s Holodnick Soup during these hot summer days!

Nina’s Holodnick Soup

5 hard-boiled eggs, chopped with knife or egg cutter

10 shredded radishes

10 oz canned beets, drained and shredded

3 peeled and shredded small cucumbers

(Per Nina – she used the bigger holes on the shredder to shred the above veggies)

1 Tablespoon finely chopped dill

1/2 bunch chopped parsley

4 cups buttermilk

Salt to taste

Put all the above ingredients in a bowl.  Mix up all together, so it become pink.  If you like a thicker soup, you can eat as is.  If you want a thinner soup, add one to two cups cold water.  You can also add ice cubes, which Nina says is a really great addition on a hot day.  Chill.

“Holodnick” means cold soup in Russian!

Eat!  Prepare to give your tastebuds a terrific treat!

HOLODNICK