This is a delicious soup.  If you love beets, you're certain to flip over this recipe.  If you don't care for beets, you'll change your mind!

Submitted By: John K.

Ingredients:

• 3 TBS olive oil
• 3# beef short ribs
• 4 bay leaves
• 2 lg onions (white or sweet yellow)
• 2 carrots chopped fine
• 2 stalks celery chopped fine
• 4 cloves garlic diced
• 1 small tomato paste
• 8 medium-sized beets, skinned & shredded with food processor
• 2 quarts beef stock
• juice of 1-2 lemons
• handful of fresh dill minced or 1 TBS dried dill
• handful of fresh parsley minced
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups of shredded lettuce (optional)
• sour cream

Instructions:

1. Into a large Dutch oven, heat olive oil and add ribs and bay leaves
2. Brown ribs thoroughly, you may need to add another 2 TBS olive oil
3. Remove ribs and cut bite pieces from the bones, reserve meat and bones
4. Add onions, carrots and celery and simmer at low temperature until almost brown
5. Add tomato paste and garlic and cook about 5 minutes stirring constantly
6. At this point add the beets, stock and short ribs with meat
7. Add lemon juice, dill, parsley, salt and black pepper
8. Bring entire mixture to a boil and then immediately reduce heat to a simmer; this may cook 2 to 6 hours
9. If using shredded lettuce, add to mixture about 1 hour before serving.  Soup is delicious without lettuce
10. Serve in soup bowls and have sour cream available for garnish

Serves 6