In the mid-late 60s times was hard for my family. My mom was a depression kid (side note pretty sure without FDR & the programs, they would have starved) so Mom has/had a talent for making foods go far. She had a garden and beets were part of it. So Mom used them, This recipe below is pretty close, (I checked with her today).
Also Grandma got her a blender on 1968, Christmas Eve, that was memorable for me. Mom got a blender & astronauts read from Genesis.
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
5 carrots
2 small-medium sweet potatoes, peeled
3 small-medium beetroots, peeled
3 sticks celery
1 litre vegetable stock***I now use commercial, but Mom made hers' from scratch.
Salt and pepper
Vegetable oil
Parsley for garnish (optional)
***I add several sliced jalapenos & a few slices of Thai chilis-this makes it spicy, be careful
Start by peeling the beetroots and then the sweet potatoes. Wear a pair of gloves when peeling the beetroots if you don’t want to get pink hands! Then chop up all the vegetables, including the onion and garlic cloves, into chunks. Don’t worry about making them too exact as they will all get blended at the end.
Start by sauteeing the garlic and onion in vegetable oil until soft. Then add the rest of the vegetables and cook for a few minutes. Add 750ml of the stock, reserving the rest. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until all vegetables are quite soft, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Ladle portions of the vegetables and stock into a blender and blend until smooth. Alternatively, you could use a hand blender if you have one. When all the soup is blended, check the flavour and add salt and pepper to taste. At this point, check the soup’s thickness - if too thick, add the remaining vegetable stock as needed.
Serve and garnish with parsley if desired - although I’m sure the Vulcans would consider this highly illogical.
It's a fancy spicy borscht, without dill or sour cream.
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