Almost Naomi’s Borsht
                    ---------------------

        This traditional borsht is based upon an old family 
recipe modified slightly by a contemporary culinary technician. 
It still has the heart of the old country but the convenience 
of standardized measurement.

        4        medium sized beets
        1        onion, peeled
        4 cups   boiling water
      1/4 cup    lemon juice
        2 Tbsp   cider vinegar
        3 Tbsp   brown sugar

        6        small boiled potatoes
      1/2 pint   sour cream
                 fresh dill

        Cut tops from beets about two inches from the roots.  
Scrub beets thoroughly, place in a cooking pot with sufficient 
cold water to cover beets.  Boil for 15 minutes or until tender 
enough to pierce with a toothpick.  

        While beets are boiling, wash leaves and chop fine in 
a wooden bowl.  The stems may be used, too.  Strain the liquid 
from the boiled beets into a bowl or soup pot.  Slip skins from 
beets and chop the beets reasonably fine.  Do not grate the 
beets.  Chop the onion fine and add to the beets.  

        Add this mixture to the strained beet juice, boiling 
water and chopped beet tops.  Add salt and bring to a quick boil.  
Reduce heat and cook five minutes.  Add lemon juice and sweeten 
to taste with brown sugar.  

        Cool and chill covered in refrigerator overnight.  

        To serve, add a small boiled potato to each soup bowl, a 
heaping tablespoon of sour cream, and garnish with fresh dill.  
May also be reheated and served as a hot soup.   


Serves: six








             New England Cranberry and Cabbage Borsht
             ----------------------------------------

        A little different and genuinely unusual, this recipe 
definitely did not come over on the Mayflower... but was handed 
down by Hester Schwartz, whose only connection to the Pilgrims 
was that her husband Alvin was once a salesman at a Plymouth 
dealership in Rhode Island. 

        1 cup   picked over cranberries
        1 cup   cold water
        2 cups  shredded white cabbage
        3 cups  water
        3 Tbsp  lemon juice or mild vinegar
        4 Tbsp  brown sugar
        2 Tbsp  white sugar
        1 tsp   salt
      1/2 pint  sour cream

        Cook cranberries in one cup of water, covered, three 
to five minutes or until they pop.  Remove from heat and put 
through a strainer, food press, or food processor.  Add the 
other ingredients in the order listed and cook eight to ten 
minutes over moderate heat.  Serve hot or cold with a scoop 
of sour cream as typical of beet borsht.  

Serves: four