Mrs Kostyras Borscht Food

MRS. KOSTYRA'S BORSCHT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place beets on a piece of parchment paper -- lined aluminum foil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fold up edges of foil and parchment to enclose beets. Place on a small baking sheet, and bake until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, about 1 hour. Let stand until cool enough to handle. Peel, and coarsely grate; set aside.
• Soak mushrooms in hot water for 30 minutes. Drain through a fine-mesh sieve, reserving liquid. Coarsely chop mushrooms; set aside.
• In a medium stockpot, combine stock, beets, mushrooms, mushroom liquid, celery leaves, parsley, garlic, sugar, a large pinch of salt, and a large pinch of pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 20 minutes.
• Add lemon juice or citric acid. Taste, and adjust for seasoning. In a small bowl, combine sour cream and flour, stirring until no lumps remain. Whisk in a ladleful of soup, then whisk the sour-cream mixture into the soup. Cook until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in dill just before serving.

BORSCHT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Put the vegetables and garlic on a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil (or a doubled piece of regular), drizzle with olive oil, season with 1/2 teaspoon salt add the rosemary. Seal the foil to make a tight package. Put the package in a roasting pan. Roast until the beets can be pierced easily with a knife, about 1 to 1/2 hours. When the beets are cool enough to handle, peel them¿the skins should slide right off with a bit of pressure from your fingers. If they don't, use a paring knife to scrape off any bits that stick.
• Put 1/2 of the vegetables in a food processor with 1/2 of the broth and puree. Transfer the puree to a saucepan. Repeat with the remaining vegetables and broth. Stir in remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and season with pepper, and simmer over medium heat until the flavors come together, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the buttermilk and Worcestershire.
• Ladle Borscht into bowls and garnish with dill.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S VEGETABLE STOCK

Steps:

• Combine the carrots, celery, onion, leek, tomato, fennel, peppercorns, garlic, parsley, thyme, and water in a medium stockpot. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh sieve, discarding solids.

BORSCHT

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, cover the beets with cold water by l inch. Stir in 1/4 cup of the vinegar and 2 tablespoons salt. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, covered, until very tender, about 30 minutes. Drain, cool, and peel the beets. Dice the beets and set aside.
• Heat the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the celery, leeks, garlic, and caraway seeds and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 8 minutes. Add the cabbage and cook, stirring, until wilted, about 3 minutes.
• Tie the parsley sprigs, thyme, and bay leaf together with a piece of kitchen twine and add to the pot with the beets, tomatoes, and broth. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes to bring the flavors together.
• Stir in the remaining 3 tablespoons vinegar and the remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Season with pepper to taste. To serve divide among warm soup bowls, top with dollops of the sour cream and sprinkle with the dill. Serve with additional vinegar at the table.

RUSSIAN BORSH/BORSCH

Steps:

• Cook meat for 2 hours in *water* or until meat is very tender -reserve liquid (*add water if needed along the way)
• Get meat out of pot and shred-set aside.
• Sauté onion, carrots in small skillet-set aside with meat.
• Boil beets in meat broth/water until soft.
• Take beets out and shred.
• Cut up raw potatoes and raw cabbage.
• Put all-(the sautéed mixture--beets, meat, raw ingredients)--together in broth/water.
• Boil until potatoes are done (about 30 minutes).
• Add spices according to taste.
• SERVE WITH SOUR CREAM!

BORSCHT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• In a large soup pot, bring the meat, bones, and water to a boil over high heat, periodically skimming off the foam as it rises to the top.
• Add the remaining stock ingredients and reduce the heat to low. Simmer, partially covered, until the meat is tender, at least 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, wash and dry the beets and wrap each one separately in aluminum foil. Bake the beets until tender, 1 ¼ hours.
• Allow the beets to cool until manageable, then stem and peel them and cut into julienne strips or fine dice.
• When the stock is ready, remove the beef, ham bone, and marrow bones, and set all but the marrow bones aside. Strain the stock through a fine sieve into a clean pot and discard all the solids.
• Bring the stock to a boil, add the potatoes and tomatoes, and season with salt. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are almost tender, about 10 minutes.
• While the vegetables are cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and green pepper, and sauté over medium heat until the onion and green pepper are slightly softened, 5 minutes. Stir in the cabbage and continue to sauté the vegetables, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is softened, 10 minutes more. Add the vegetables to the soup.
• Sprinkle the beets with ¼ cup lemon juice and add them to the soup. Stir the soup and simmer, uncovered, for 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and prunes. Season to taste with sugar, pepper, and additional lemon juice and salt, if desired. Simmer for another 7 minutes.
• Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces and scrape all the meat off the ham bone. Add both meats to the soup.
• Remove the borscht from the heat and sprinkle with the minced garlic, bacon (if desired), and 3 tablespoons each of parsley and dill. Let stand for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve garnished with additional chopped fresh herbs and pass the sour cream.