The second Ukrainian dish that Joe made in the Gilmore Park Church Community Kitchen was Borscht.

The above beet soup was slightly tangy and the beets were sweet. I once heard from a commentary by Dr. Art Hister on the Global Morning News that beet root juice helps lower blood pressure and thus helps to prevent cardiovascular problems.

Ingredients

• 8 cups cold water or chicken/vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 beets, cut into thin strips or coarsely grate
• 3 medium carrots, cut into thin strips or coarsely grate
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3 pepper corns
• 1/2 cup half & half
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons flour, optional (to thicken soup if preferred)
• 1/2 pounds green beans, cut into 1″ length

P/S: the potatoes in the photo above were for the Potato Perogies recipe.

Joe brought along his manual food processor for show and tell in the kitchen. He prefers to use the manual one than the electric food processor. He’s an old school guy.

Source: Joe

Instructions

Peel the beets and carrots. Cut into chunks. Joe used his manual food processor to coarsely grate the beets and carrots.

Bring 8 cups of water or broth with the grated beets to a boil. Remove scums.

Add the rest of the vegetables i.e. onion, carrot and green beans. If you prefer your green beans not to be over-cooked, add the green beans at a later part of the cooking.

Cook until the beets are tender; about an hour. Joe usually cooks it for 2 hours at home. Add lemon juice. Season borscht with salt and pepper to taste.

Add half and half to the soup. If you prefer to have a thicker soup, combine 2 tablespoons of flour with the half & half before adding to the soup. Season with more ground black pepper before serving.

Joe also brought a hand written family cook book which his dear friends made for him. How many do you have your family favourite recipes documented? I do; on chowtimes.wordpress.com.