The beet borscht recipe from the old Time-Life Cookbooks of the World series, on Russia.

I'm not going to type this out, because I only made it once. It was three days of work, but it was so good, one of my guests who came that night (it was a soup party of three different soups and various breads) mentioned it to me 36 years later, saying she has never forgotten it.

I hadn't either; it was really terrific. Just....a whole lot of work, including an authentic egg-white clarification of the roasted beef bone broth. My mother had always made a fine soup stock (she was a cookwares store owner and taught cooking classes at her store) and I do a good stock myself (there is always a pitcher of gelled stock in my frig), but after doing this one the classic French way -- all the Russian banquet food was traditionally French technique -- I learned there was literally a whole 'nother world of haute cuisine beyond even the best home cooking.

Thank you. That is one from that series that I do not own. The Time-Life Foods of the World is probably my most used cooking reference, to this day. So, I ordered a used Russian cooking volume!

I make borscht from scratch, but a friend had me try this quick & easy recipe from Alycia's Restaurant. (It's now closed, but they were well known in Winnipeg for their soup and perogies.)

I'm amazed how good it is! I add *lots" of fresh dill and stir a good amount of whipping cream into the soup to finish...

HTH

Here is a link that might be useful: Alycia's Borscht Recipe

Here's the recipe I make for Borscht. The Dh hates beets so I don't get to make it very often. This recipe is adapted from Mennonite Foods & Folkways from South Russia, by Norma Jost Voth. Serves 8-12.

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs boneless beef chuck or stew beef, cut into bite size chunks (I actually find that what grocery store label stew beef is very chewy (rubbery). I like to use a little better cut of meat.)
1/2 cup flour
3 quarts (12 cups) beef broth
3 medium - large beets, cooked, peeled, and diced or shredded
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/2 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon sugar
4 tablespoons butter
2 large carrots, peeled and shredded or diced
1 onion, chopped
3 medium potatoes, cooked and cubed
1/2 small cabbage, sliced thin or shredded
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Dill weed to taste
Black Pepper to taste
Sour cream

Dredge the beef in the flour. Melt butter in a stock pot (Dutch oven) and add beef; brown all sides of beef. In the stock pot add beets, salt, vinegar, tomato paste and sugar; stir. Add carrots and onion and sauté until onions are translucent. Add beef broth, and all remaining ingredients except sour cream and simmer for 20 minutes. The borscht should be pleasantly tart but not sour. If sour, add another tablespoon of sugar and / or carrots until desired flavor is reached. Stir and let rest for 15 minutes (heat off). Place in individual bowls and top each with a dollop of sour cream.