Mrs Kostyras Vegetable Stock Food

BORSCHT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place beets on a piece of parchment paper-lined aluminum foil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fold foil and parchment up 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 the mushrooms in the water for 30 minutes. Drain through a fine mesh sieve; reserving liquid. Coarsely chop mushrooms; set aside.
• In a medium stockpot, combine the 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 enough lemon juice or citric acid until you've reached your desired flavor. Cook until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Refrigerate until cooled, up to overnight. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and garnish with dill.

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.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 2 1/2-quart casserole dish; set aside.
• Warm the milk and tomato paste in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, cheddar cheese, and 1/2 cup Swiss cheese; set the cheese sauce aside.
• Cover a large pot of salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook until pasta is al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain well in a colander. Stir macaroni into reserved cheese sauce.
• Pour mixture into prepared dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup Swiss cheese, and dot with butter. Bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 45 minutes. Serve hot with sour cream, if desired.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S BABKAS

Steps:

• Butter three kugelhopf molds (each 1 1/2 quarts and 8 inches in diameter); set aside. Butter a large bowl; set aside. Heat milk and butter in a saucepan over medium-low, stirring, until butter is melted.
• Sprinkle yeast and a pinch of sugar over the warm water in a small bowl. Let stand until foamy, 7 to 10 minutes.
• Whisk together 4 eggs, the egg yolks, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until thick, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla, liqueur, zests, yeast mixture, and milk mixture; whisk 1 minute more. With a wooden spoon, gradually stir in up to 10 cups flour, 1 cup at a time, until a sticky dough forms. Stir in dried fruits and almonds.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead, dusting with flour if it seems sticky, until smooth and soft, about 10 minutes. Transfer to buttered bowl. Loosely cover with buttered plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours. Punch down dough. Loosely cover with buttered wrap; let rise until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours more.
• Punch down dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface; knead 1 minute. Divide dough into 3 equal pieces. With lightly floured hands, roll each piece into an 18-inch-long rope. Fit each rope into a buttered mold; press end of rope into dough to seal. Loosely cover with buttered wrap. Let rise until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together remaining egg and the cream in a small bowl. Brush dough with egg wash. Bake until golden, about 35 minutes. Let cool slightly in molds on a wire rack, about 10 minutes. Unmold onto rack, and let cool completely, larger sides down.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S MEATLOAF

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, then fit the sheet with a wire rack. Brush an 10-by-4 3/4-by-3-inch loaf pan with oil, and place on rack; set aside. Place bread in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade; pulse until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a medium bowl, and add ground beef.
• Place onion, garlic, celery, carrots, and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade; pulse until fine. Add to meat mixture, using hands to mix well. Add egg, 1/2 cup ketchup, 2 teaspoons dry mustard, salt, and pepper; use hands to combine thoroughly. Transfer to prepared loaf pan.
• Combine remaining 1/2 cup ketchup, remaining teaspoon dry mustard, and brown sugar in a bowl; stir until smooth.
• Brush mixture over meatloaf; place pan in oven, atop prepared wire rack set on parchment-lined baking sheet. Cook until a meat thermometer inserted in the center reads 160 degrees, about 90 minutes. If top gets too dark, cover with foil and continue baking.

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.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S BEEF STOCK

Steps:

• Place meat and bones in a large stock pot. Add enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a very gentle simmer. Cook, skimming occasionally, until no more foam rises to the surface, about 1 hour. Add water if at any time the surface level drops below the bones. Remove any accumulated fat from the surface.
• Add carrots, celery, parsnip, and bay leaf. Place onion halves directly on the trivet of a gas-stove burner over high heat or on a grill. Turn the onion with tongs as the onion becomes golden brown. If you do not have a gas stove, place the onion on a baking pan, and broil in the oven, turning as each side becomes golden brown. Add onion to stockpot. Continue to simmer until the meat is tender, about 2 hours.
• Prepare an ice-water bath. Strain the stock through a fine sieve, or a cheesecloth-lined strainer, into a large bowl. Discard the solids. Transfer the bowl to the ice-water bath, and let the stock cool to room temperature.
• Transfer the stock to an airtight container. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours, and up to overnight so the fat collects on the top and can be removed. Stock can be refrigerated up to 3 days or frozen up to 4 months.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S KIELBASA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a pot of simmering water, poach kielbasa for 20 minutes. Remove from pot, and transfer to a roasting pan with about 1 cup of the poaching water. Using a fork, poke the skin of the kielbasa to prevent it from cracking. Roast until brown and crispy, about 20 minutes.
• Slice kielbasa on the diagonal into 1/2-inch slices. Serve with rye bread, horseradish, and mustard.