Russian Borscht

Last night T. made a great Russian Borscht and incorporated my suggestions on how it was when I lived in Russia. So, thank you Larisa for the yummy borscht ideas! We used our local organic produce from Abundant Harvest. The beets, the parsley, the carrots, the potatoes, the turnips, and the celery....all local organic. Our lemon juice came from our great neighbors' lemon tree, which I think is also organic. :-)

Here goes:
5 medium beets cut into 1/2" cubes
1 T. oil
1/2 t. black pepper, freshly (course) ground
dash of thyme

3 T. canola oil
1 small yellow onion, finely diced
1 lb. cubed pork shoulder (or beef, if you prefer)

1 stalk celery, finely diced
2 carrots, 1/4" slices

2 c. cabbage (green, not purple), cut into 1"x1/2" rectangles

2 large potatoes, cut into 3/4" cubes
1 purple turnip, 1/2" cubes
1/2 t. dried dill weed, or 2 t. fresh
1 t. dried thyme, or 3 t. fresh
2 t. red wine vinegar
3 t. freshly squeezed lemon juice (thank you B. & L. for the lemons)

4 c. broth (we used 4 cups water & 3 bullion cubes)

salt to taste

sour cream or greek-style yogurt


DIRECTIONS:
1. Roast the beets:
put cubed beets into a round glass pyrex dish.
drizzle with 1 T. oil
sprinkle with 1/2 t. pepper and dash of thyme
roast in preheated oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes

2. Brown the meat:
Brown the meat with the onion and 3 T. oil.

3. Add carrots and celery:
saute the celery and carrots until the carrots begin to soften.

4. Add the cabbage:
saute the cabbage and allow it to soften

5. Add turnips, potato, dill, thyme:
stir in turnip cubes, potato cubes, dill and thyme

6. Add the roasted beets:
stir in roasted beets

6. Add broth, vinegar, and lemon juice:
pour in broth, vinegar, and lemon juice.
bring to boil
simmer until the potatoes are cooked through

7. Serve:
Serve the soup with a dollop of sour cream and garnish with sprig of fresh dill or fresh parsley.

Приятного аппетита! (Prijatnogo appetita)