Zupa Ogórkowa

This creamy dill pickle soup is an old Polish favorite from this wonderful blog that I've long enjoyed, especially in the wintertime.  I've made minor modifications based on my own preferences, so feel free to adapt from here or follow the link to give the original a try!

Zupa Ogórkowa

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of butter

1 medium onion (chopped)

1 stalk of celery (chopped)

4 to 6 cloves of garlic (crushed)

4 cups of vegetable or chicken broth

3 cups of chopped garlic dill pickles

2/3 cup of pickle juice

4 cups of cubed potato

Dill (to taste)

1 cup of sour cream

2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons of sugar*

Pepper (to taste)

Salt (to taste)

*Or to taste! This might still be too sour for your tastes, but add more sugar sparingly - once it's in you can't take it back if things get too sweet!

Directions

1) Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat and sauté the onion and celery until the former is translucent, then add the garlic and sauté another couple of minutes.

2) Add the broth, pickles, pickle juice, potato, and dried dill (if using) to the pot, bring to a boil, and then turn the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or until the potato has reached your desired tenderness.

3) While the soup is simmering mix the sour cream and flour, then whisk in some of the hot soup to temper the mixture before whisking it into the soup when the potato is done cooking and simmer another couple of minutes.

4) Add the fresh dill (if using) and enjoy as is or with some lovely bread. Rye is apparently the route to go in Poland, but I've only been once, so I really can't say!