This vegan borscht soup is made with liver-cleansing beets, and vegetables in a creamy blended base of cashews, soy milk and white beans seasoned with fresh dill for a hearty and flavorful soup. It is such a delicious high protein beet soup to enjoy in cold weather and even tastes great as a cold soup served in summer!
I grew up in a tiny town in British Columbia where Russian borscht was a popular soup among the community due to its Russian heritage. My mom learned how to make the best traditional borscht recipe with lots of cream, butter, and hearty vegetables, including red beets and dill, the main ingredients in borscht.
While I loved my mom’s soup, I wanted to create my own vegan borscht soup recipe free of butter and cream, as these are among my top food sensitivities that I try to avoid. Plus butter is high in saturated fats which have been shown to increase insulin resistance.
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Instead, I created a vegan version using olive oil instead of butter to fry the grated vegetables. I blended cashews with soy milk and white beans to make the best dairy-free creamy base for the vegan borscht soup. The soup has a mild earthy flavor, but it is the best-tasting beet borscht soup, especially when fresh herbs such as dill are used to flavor the soup.
Ingredients for the vegan borscht
- 3 cups cabbage
- 3 cups beets
- 3 cups carrots
- 3 cups potatoes
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 onion
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 3 cups water mixed with 3 tsp better than bouillon vegetable base
- 1 cup fresh dill loosely packed
- 15 oz can tomatoes
- 3 cups soy milk
- 1/2 cup cashews
- 1 14 oz can cannellini beans
- Salt and pepper to taste
How to make the best vegan borscht soup
- Cook the Potatoes: Peel and chop the potatoes. Place them in a pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Cook for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Drain and set aside.
- Prep the Vegetables: Grate the carrots and beets, and thinly slice the cabbage. Finely dice the garlic and onion.
- Saute the Vegetables: Heat 2 tsp olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and minced garlic, and saute for a few minutes until softened. Add the grated carrots, beets, and sliced cabbage. Season with salt and pepper, then saute for about 20 minutes on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.
- Prepare the Creamy Base: In a high-speed blender, blend the cashews and soy milk until smooth and creamy. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture to mash the potatoes.
- Combine the Ingredients: Add the canned tomatoes, chopped dill, vegetable broth (water mixed with Better Than Bouillon vegetable base), and the cashew cream (minus the reserved cup) to the pot with the sautéed vegetables. Stir to combine.
- Mash the Potatoes: Once the potatoes are cooked, mash them using a fork or potato masher with the 1 cup of reserved cashew cream. Add the mashed potatoes to the soup pot.
- Simmer and Serve: Allow the borscht to simmer on low for at least 10 more minutes. The longer it sits, the better it tastes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste before serving.
Enjoy your delicious and hearty vegan borscht soup that becomes tastier the longer it sits as all the flavors meld together. If you prefer a runnier soup add in an extra cup of vegetable broth.
Can you freeze borsht?
If you have leftovers, borscht freezes well to enjoy at a later date. You can freeze in 500 ml glass mason jars which is an ideal portion size. But leave room for the soup to expand at the top; otherwise, the jar may break.
You can also freeze this vegan borsht in freezer bags or plastic Tupperware with a lid. I avoid plastic Tupperware and only have glass Tupperware as plastic can contain toxic substances such as BPA. Mason jars are the perfect airtight container to store soup in the refrigerator as well.
How to serve vegan borscht soup
Enjoy this vegan borsht soup recipe with gluten-free toast, sourdough bread, or rye bread topped with a vegan cashew cream cheese for a hearty, healthy, and delicious lunch meal with soup!
You can also add a dollop of vegan sour cream, but I found the vegan soup delicious and perfectly creamy, as is from the vegan cashew coconut milk.
Nutritional benefits of this vegetarian borscht recipe
This vegan borscht recipe makes approximately six servings, with each serving equaling 749 grams.
According to cronometer each serving contains:
- 395 calories
- 17 grams protein
- 52 grams carbohydrates
- 10 grams of fat
- 13 grams of fiber
Borscht soup is an excellent source of the following nutrients and phytonutrients:
- vitamin B1 (thiamine)
- folate
- vitamin A
- alpha-carotene
- beta-carotene
- lycopene
- vitamin c
- vitamin k
- copper
- iron
- magnesium
- manganese
- phosphorus
- potassium
A great way to determine if you are meeting your body’s basic nutritional needs is to track your food intake in cronometer. Input all the foods you eat into the food diary for at least one week to see what nutrients you obtain through diet and what nutrients you lack.
After analyzing your data, you can find out what nutrients you lack and then make a concerted effort to eat more whole foods high in nutrients you need more of! To make this easy you can search in cronometer for foods high in a specific nutrient.
Vitamin B1 is a vital nutrient for the nervous system. A deficiency in vitamin B1 leads to the disease Beriberi which is characterized by the following symptoms:
- edema in the feet and legs
- weight loss and muscle wasting
- nerve degeneration
- stunted growth
Rest assured that you will obtain lots of vitamin B1 in this vegan beet soup.
Folate is a crucial nutrient for the MTHFR enzyme. Anyone with an MTHFR gene mutation will want to ensure they eat lots of folate-rich foods like those in this hearty soup.
Carrots are an excellent source of vitamin A, beta-carotene, and alpha-carotene, which are particularly beneficial for eye health and the immune system.
Vitamin c is essential for the immune system and collagen production in the skin. Get your skin glow on when you eat this antioxidant-rich soup high in vitamin c.
Magnesium deficiency is one of the most common nutritional deficiencies for many people. Low levels of magnesium are associated with obesity and diabetes. This vegan beet soup is excellent for weight loss for many reasons, including the fact that one serving contains 146 mg of magnesium.
Manganese is another mineral I love, and I try to obtain ample amounts from the diet as it is the co-factor for the SOD enzyme (superoxide dismutase). This enzyme is one of the body’s top antioxidant enzymes, crucial for reducing inflammation and reactive oxygen species.
I have always been prone to inflammation in my skin, which I believe has something to do with SNP’s in this gene, but thankfully there are antioxidant-rich foods that also help to reduce inflammation. After discovering that I had SNP’s in the SOD gene via genetic testing, I have focused on including manganese-rich foods in my diet to support the SOD enzyme.
Potassium is an electrolyte required for optimal hydration and works in synergy with sodium. Many people get too much salt in their diet, yet more potassium is needed.
Health benefits of the ingredients in the vegan borsht soup
All the vegetables in this healthy borscht soup are among the top liver-cleansing foods. Eating a variety of vegetables, such as those found in this detox vegetable soup, is a great way to support optimal liver function and boost overall health.
Beets are a fantastic vegetable for diabetes, gut health, and liver detox. The vibrant red beet soup is full of antioxidants that reduce inflammation. One of the best ways to naturally support a sluggish gallbladder for optimal phase 3 liver detox and gut health is by eating beets or a beet soup such as this delicious vegan borscht.
Cabbage contains vitamin u, which has amazing gut healing properties as the vitamin u factor in cabbage juice is attributed to the heating of histamine-induced peptic ulcers. The bacteria H. pylori is also associated with stomach ulcers, and cabbage inhibits the growth of H. Pylori.
This vegan borsht soup contains 13 grams of a fiber per serving which is great for diversifying and nourishing the microbiome. Fiber is also great for weight loss and balancing blood sugar levels.
As you can see, this healthy borsht soup is packed with health-promoting vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. There are so many health benefits of this dairy-free borsht.
The borsht is also free of the top food sensitivities that cause weight gain, including dairy. If you have weight loss goals, this delicious soup is the perfect lunch or hearty dinner soup to enjoy in the winter season. Also, be sure to check out this beet soup recipe.
This vegan borscht soup is found in my high protein vegetarian soups E-book that you can subscribe to access in my library of free E-books. All the E-books are designed to be downloaded or printed on standard paper to create your own recipe book binder.
Vegan Borscht Soup – Dairy Free, Creamy & Healthy
Equipment
- 1 Soup pot
- 1 Chopping knife
- 1 potato peeler or paring knife
- 1 High speed blender
- 1 Chopping board
Ingredients
- 3 cups cabbage
- 3 cups beets
- 3 cups carrots
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 3 cups potatoes
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 onion
- 3 cups water
- 3 tsp Better than Bouillon Vegetable Base
- 1 cup fresh dill loosley chopped
- 15 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- ½ cup cashews
- 3 cups soy milk
- 1 14 oz can cannellini beans
Instructions
- Peel the skins off the potatoes then place in a pot covered with water. Bring the water to a boil then cook for 20 minutes.
- Grate the carrot and beets, then use a knife to thinly chop the cabbage. Finely dice the garlic and onion.
- Grease the soup pot with olive oil then add the garlic and onion and let it saute for 2-3 minutes before adding the beets, carrots and cabbage. Saute on medium heat for 20 minutes with some salt and pepper.
- Blend the cashews, soy milk and white beans until smooth and creamy. Save 1 cup to mash the potatoes with.
- Add the water mixed with vegetable stock to the soup pot with canned tomatoes freshly chopped dill and the cashew coconut cream.
- Mash the cooked potatoes with 1 cup of the cashew coconut cream then add to the soup pot. Let all the ingredients simmer for another ten minutes before serving .
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