Cold beet soup

RECIPE NUMBER 1
4 cups ice-cold water
2 cups buttermilk
2 cups canned, diced or 3-4 fresh beets, boiled and peeled
2 small cucumbers, peeled and diced
2 hard-boiled eggs, diced
½ cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
3 Tbsps. fresh dill, shopped
Pinch sugar
In a large bowl, whisk together water, buttermilk, and sour cream. Add beets, cucumbers and eggs to milk mixture. Season to taste; mix well; sprinkle with dill. Best if chilled before serving. (From Treasures of Lithuanian Cooking )

RECIPE NUMBER 2
6 fresh beets
1 medium cucumber
3-4 green onions
4 hard-boiled eggs
A sprig of dill
¾ quart of buttermilk
2 Tbsps. sour cream (optional)
Juice of a ½ lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Boil beets for 1 hour or until done. Peel beets and grate or may use food processor. Peel and grate cucumbers and cut onion. Peel and chop eggs fine. Chop dill fine; mix all the ingredients. Chill. (From Taste of Lithuania )

RECIPE NUMBER 3
4 to 6 medium beets with stems and leaves
1 chopped onion
Salt and pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
2 tsps. vinegar
1 cup sour cream
1 quart water
Cook whole beets until tender. Peel and grate coarsely or cut into julienne strips. To one quart of water, add chopped onion, beet greens and stems, bay leaf, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until tender. Add grated or cut beets. Simmer about 15 min. Add vinegar for tartness. Remove from heat. Ladle off about a cupful of the soup, allow to cool slightly, then gradually stir in 1 cup sour cream. Pour this mixture into soup. Cream will curdle if soup is too hot. Soup can be served hot or cold. (Sent by Kathy Hazlewood, Overland Park, KS)

RECIPE NUMBER 4
8 medium-sized beets
8 cups vegetable or defatted chicken broth (fresh or canned)
2 cups water
3 Tbsps. fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste
½ cup sour cream (for garnish)
Scrub the beets well before cooking. Place the beets in a heavy pot and cover with broth. Bring to a boil, partially covered. Reduce the heat to medium; simmer for 45 min. or until beets are tender. Remove beets to a bowl with a slotted spoon. When the beets are cool enough to handle, slip off the skins and cut beets into pieces. Cold beet soup Pour the broth through a fine strainer into another pot to remove any particles. Puree the beets in batches in the bowl of a food processor, adding the broth and water through the feed tube. Remove to a bowl. Add the lemon juice until the right balance of sweet and sour is achieved. Season with salt. Serve soup in small portions, dolloped with sour cream.

RECIPE NUMBER 5
1 cube beef broth
1 cup boiling water
1 lb. can beets
2 hard-boiled eggs
2 small cucumbers
1 quart buttermilk
2 Tbsps. chopped green onions
1 Tbsp. chopped dill
¾ tsp. pepper
2 Tbsps. sour cream, if desired
Dissolve cube of beef broth in boiling water; mix and let cool. Grate beets. Chop eggs and cucumbers. Mix all ingredients. Refrigerate before serving. (From Skaniai valgome )

RECIPE NUMBER 6
This one comes from Lithuania
2 cooked beets, peeled and coarsely grated
2 fresh cucumbers, finely cut
2 hard-boiled eggs
6 Tbsps. sour cream
4 cups sour milk or buttermilk
1 cup boiled water
8 sprigs fresh dill, finely chopped
1 cup scallion greens, finely chopped
Crush egg yolks with scallion greens and salt. Add cucumber, finely chopped egg whites, sour cream, sour milk or buttermilk, beets and 1 cup of boiled but chilled water. Mix. Serve in individual bowls sprinkled with dill, with hot potatoes. (From Lithuanian Traditional Foods )