joan's borscht

2 lbs. stew meat, fat trimmed, cut into cubes
Beef broth (3 cans?)
1 bunch beets 2-3 lbs (choose a bunch with similar sizes to enable same cooking time)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar
3 Tablespoons butter
1 onion, grated
2 - 3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 Tablespoon sugar**
1 teaspoon salt**
1 (8 oz.) bag slaw mix
Sour cream, for serving
(tomato juice, boiled diced potatoes, fresh tomato) optional*

1. Boil beef in consomme until tender, covered.
2. Trim greens from beets to 1 inch. Scrub. In another pan, boil beets in enough water to cover; add lemon juice or vinegar, covered, until tender, about 1/2 hour (poke with fork to determine when they are cooked through). Keep water. Strain it if you like. Remove beets to cool. Peel the cooled beets with a small paring knife or rub the skins off with your hands. (Beware! you may want to use gloves and apron because of the red stain). Grate the beets or cut in small to medium dice.
3. In frying pan, fry onion and garlic until tender.
4. Add sugar, salt and slaw mix to beef. Simmer until slaw is soft.
5. Combine all; you may not want to add all the beet water. Add beets just before serving and heat. Adjust seasonings/add more beet water. Serve with dollop of sour cream. Na zdorovye!
Unused portion can be frozen.

*I don't add these, but I believe some Russians typically do.
**I don't remember how much; start small, taste, adjust.

~Joan S.