Yes, Virginia, borscht does taste better the second day!

I think borscht could be the perfect American food for the holidays. First off, I do not believe there is a standard Christmas soup. The 4th of July has barbecue and hot dogs and Thanksgiving has Turkey. What could be a better time for soup than December! Second, it's red. Now all we need is Heintz to create green sour cream, and we've got a new American classic.

I've been playing around with my borscht recipe since my roommates in Bishkek shared theirs with me in April. I made a particularly tasty version yesterday, which was even better today. For my dear cold-climate dwelling readers, I thought I'd share with you my recipe to help you through this winter.

A quick note: I cheat with my borscht, as I don't add meat and I don't make a stock ahead of time. I doubt I've got any stickler babushki reading my blog, but if so, let me say it now... I don't claim this recipe to be authentic! That being said, I suppose there is no "one" way to make it. Poking around a bit on recipe sites, this recipe seems to be a safe bet, however, so take a look if you're interested.

My Borscht Recipe, estimated

2 onions

Fresh or dried parsley

Fresh or dried dill

4 cloves of garlic

2 beets

bouillon (optional)

3 potatoes

1 carrot

Parsnips and celery (optional)

Salt and pepper

1 small head of cabbage

Sour cream (garnish)

Chop the onions and garlic. Sauté them over low heat with the parsley and dill. Add tomatoes.

Peel and prepare the beets. They should be chopped in "sticks" rather than cubes. Add these to the pan and sauté for about 10 minutes more.

Heat up some water in a big pot, and if you feel like it add some bouillon. Add the mess you've sautéed in the pan.

Chop up potatoes and carrots in sticks as well, if for no other reason than they look good like that and the Ukrainians seem to do it that way. You can also prepare other vegetables to add, such as parsnips, celery, or whatever you have lying around. Borscht can be a bit of a stone soup in that way. Throw all of this into the pot. Chop up a small cabbage, or half a head of a large one. Purple or green can work.

Now you can add more parsley and dill, as well as salt and pepper. Go ahead and add Mrs. Dash as well if you feel like it. Let it simmer for an hour. Serve with sour cream. Bread is pretty good with it as well, but of course the best of all is pampushki. These are delicious (and adorable) garlic-buttery buns.

Of course you'll be hungry when it is finished, but if you've made enough you can wait until the next day to have the (even better) leftovers.

If you try it out, please let me know in the comments. I'd also love to hear any of your own borscht recipes you're hiding!