Beet Soup

Peel, rinse, and slice the potatoes. Cook for 15 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain the potatoes, and let cool.

Peel and finely dice the onion, carrot, celery root, and the beet. Heat the butter in a pan, add the vegetables, and sauté briefly. Add the bay leaf and the thyme, then mix in the broth. Add the vinegar, and season to taste with salt, pepper, caraway seed, and allspice. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. 

Heat the clarified butter in a pan, and sauté the potatoes for 5 minutes, until golden brown. Sprinkle with the chopped thyme, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Remove the bay leaf and thyme from the soup. Puree the soup (and pass through a fine strainer if you'd like). If the soup is too thick, thin with a little broth. Likewise if it's too thin, simmer until reduced to the desired consistency.