My friend Natasha is originally from the Ukraine and we confer on cooking quite regularly. She recently showed me how to make borscht (apparently, the t is either silent or non-existent in Russian). I’ll try to recreate what I saw her do, but it looks like one of those recipes that you feel your way through. Read the instructions all the way through (a couple times) before starting as timing is pretty important and you need to be able to do several things at once.

3-4 white potatoes, chopped (bite-size)
1 medium white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 medium carrots, coarsely shredded
half a small head white cabbage, shredded fine
1 large fresh beet
juice of half lemon
1 cup tomato sauce (with basil, if you can get it)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
salt or vegetable broth powder to taste
1/3 cup fresh chopped dill

Fill soup pot (at least 5-quart) to half-way with water and put potatoes in water. Add some salt and bring to a boil. At the same time, sauté onion and garlic in a skillet over medium heat with a little olive oil. After a couple of minutes, add carrots to skillet and sauté until tender. After potatoes have been simmering for 5-7 minutes, add cabbage shreds to soup pot. When carrots are done, add skillet mixture to soup pot and stir, keeping at a simmer.

Now things get kind of complex. Peel the beet and shred it coarsely – don’t do it before or the purply-red of the beet will be less intense. Sauté beet shreds in onion pan over medium heat, pouring lemon juice over them to retain deep red color. After 3-4 minutes, add tomato sauce to beet and stir thoroughly. Tomato sauce will take on beet color. When beet shreds are tender, pour them into the soup pot. Add chickpeas to soup pot and simmer for 10 more minutes, tasting frequently and adding salt or broth mix as necessary. When potato is fork-tender (but not mushy), soup is finished.

Remove soup pot from heat, put in dill and cover. Allow to sit for at least an hour before serving. Serve with dark bread.

Gentiles: these are something you should really experience, if you never have. You may know them as “potato pancakes,” if you’re not familiar with them from an Eastern European/Jewish cuisine background. Potato pancakes are kind of seasonal fare here in Germany, often sold by street vendors fresh out of the fryer with apple sauce to sweeten them up and cool them down somewhat. We had some at the Weihnachtsmarkt out on the square, but they paled in comparison to the ones I had in Cologne. So Sarah found a recipe, and we made them, and they are just awesome. We were inspired by this recipe.

6 large potatoes, peeled
1 large onion
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon baking powder
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
1 pinch sugar
flour (enough to hold ingredients together, you’ll be able to tell when you’ve added enough)
shortening (we used butter-flavored shortening)

Cut peeled potatoes into chunks or spears and shred in food processor. Cut onions into chunks and shred in food processor.Mix potatoes and onions together in a colander over a large bowl. Allow to drain.

Pour mixture into a large bowl and add beaten eggs, salt, pepper, baking powder, sugar, and a tablespoon of flour at-a-time until mixture holds together. Mix well.

In a fry pan, melt shortening. You’ll need about 1/8″. Spoon heaping tablespoons of the mixture into the oil. Flatten each spoonful with the back of the spoon to make thin latkes. Fry until the edges turn a dark brown. Flip over to fry the other side.

Drain on a paper towel. Serve with apple sauce and/or sour cream.

I’ve never actually had a cabbage roll, but I’ve read recipes and it looks like more work that I want to do. I found this recipe that cuts out all the rolling – it’s tasty and not terribly complicated. The only issue I have is coring the cabbage. Serves 6-8.

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c chopped onion
3 cloves chopped garlic
1/2 can tomato sauce (14.5 oz of 29 oz can)
2 T Worcestshire sauce
1 3/4 lb chopped cabbage
1/3 c uncooked rice
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 (14 oz) can beef broth

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a large skillet, brown beef, onion and garlic in oil over medium high heat until redness is gone. Drain off fat.

In a large mixing bowl combine the tomato sauce, Worcestshire sauce, cabbage, rice and salt. Add meat mixture and mix all together. Pour mixture into a 9×13 inch baking dish. Pour broth over mixture and bake in the preheated oven, covered, for 1 hour. Stir, replace cover and bake for another 30 minutes.

The recipe is very easy and it’s mild because it has apples and potatoes in it. You can make it on the stove if you keep the temperature very low and check it to add water if it needs it.

2 Lbs. polish sausage (kielbasa)
If you use fresh sausage, brown it first. Then drain the grease. If you use smoked sausage, just cut it into serving sizes.
2 small potatoes
2 small cooking apples (Do not peel the apples or potatoes.)
6-8 cups sauerkraut ( 2 Vlasic jars, or 2-3 large cans), rinsed well
1/2 cup water

Mix these ingredients together

3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons caraway seeds
2 tablespoon butter
3 tablespoon flour

Mix these ingredients together until you have a paste and drop them on the sausage mixture by spoonfuls.
Cook on stove on very low heat for at least one hour. Stir occasionally.
Add a little water if needed. In the crockpot, cook on low 7-9 hours, (high 3-4). You could do this in the oven, too, at 300- 325 degrees for 2 hours. (Nice for a cold day when you don’t mind the oven on!)
recipe_source: Cliff’s mom

It’s a lot of work and requires a lot of dishwork afterward, but man is it ever worth it!

6 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
450g bacon, diced
1 onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 (16 ounce) package lasagna noodles
1 pkg Pasta Käse (=pasta cheese, because cheddar is damn near impossible to find in Germany)
salt and pepper to taste
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. Place the potatoes in a large pot with water to cover over high heat. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are tender. Remove from heat, drain, then combine with the milk and 6 tablespoons of butter, mash and set aside.
3. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Saute the bacon, onion and garlic in the butter for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the bacon is fully cooked.
4. Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions and cool under running water.
5. Place 1/2 of the mashed potatoes into the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish. Top this with 1/3; of the cheese, followed by a layer of lasagna noodles. Repeat this with the remaining potatoes, another 1/2 of the cheese and a layer of noodles. Then arrange the bacon, onion and garlic over the noodles, then another layer of noodles, and finally top all with the remaining cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Bake, uncovered, at 350°F (175°C) for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve with sour cream and chopped fresh chives.

2 lbs drained Sauerkraut (1 c juice reserved)
2 tsp Caraway Seeds
2 T Düsseldorfer Löwensenf Mittelscharf (or any medium-spicy german mustard)
1 tsp Black Pepper
1/2 C Beef Broth
1 pkg Nürnberger Bratwürste (any kind of available bratwurst will do)
2 bay leaves

1. Heat sauerkraut in skillet over medium heat. After heated through, add caraway seeds, mustard and black pepper.
2. In large flat pan, brown sliced bratwurst. Set aside.
3. Add sauerkraut juice, bratwurst, beef broth and bay leaves to sauerkraut. Cover and stir occasionally, until sauerkraut is slightly browned and most of liquid is cooked off.