Vegetarian Borsht

This Borsht (she spells it "Borshch") was absolutely incredible the day I made it. Neither of us liked the leftovers all that much, however, and it makes a truly heroic quantity of soup. Plus, it's a ton of chopping (even if you use a food processor, which I did). Unclear whether I'll make it again at some point.

Vegetarian Borshch
adapted from The Winter Vegetarian

• 2 large onions, peeled & finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled & minced
• 1 large carrot, peeled & finely chopped
• 1 parsnip, peeled & finely chopped
• 1 turnip, peeled & finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 6 medium beets (1 1/2 lb), peeled & finely chopped
• 3 medium potatoes, peeled & finely chopped
• 1 small celery root (1/4 lb), peeled & finely chopped
• 1 lb cabbage, shredded
• 1 c pitted brine-cured black olives (I consider this an optional ingredient, but add more salt if you omit it)
• 1 tart apple, peeled, cored, & finely chopped
• 8 C water
• 1 28-oz can tomatoes in puree
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 10 black peppercorns
• 3 allspice berries
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• freshly ground black pepper
• minced fresh dill (as a garnish)
• sour cream (as a garnish)

In a huge stockpot, saute the onions, garlic, carrot, parsnip, and turnip in the oil until soft. Stir in beets through salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat a simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Just before serving, stir in the lemon juice and pepper. Serve hot, garnished with dill and sour cream.

serves 10-12