Serves 6 to 8
• approximately 2 bunches fresh, young beets with leaves
• 2 qts. water
• 1 Tbs. salt
• 1½ to 2 Tbs. cider vinegar
• 1 Tbs. sugar
• 3 Tbs. chopped fresh dill
• 1½ cups sour cream
• 5 hard-boiled eggs
• 1 medium-sized cucumber
• 1½ cups beer
1. Peel and cut in julienne strips enough beets to fill 3 cups. Wash the stems and tender leaves carefully and chop up enough to solidly fill 2 cups. Put the beets, stems, and leaves in a large enameled pot along with 2 quarts water, the salt, the vinegar, and the sugar. Bring the water to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer until all the beets are completely tender, about 1 hour.
2. Taste the soup and add a little more vinegar or sugar as needed. Chill.
3. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the chopped dill with a little salt and pound it with a wooden pestle until it is moist and very fragrant. Add the sour cream and mix thoroughly. Pour in about 1 cup of the beet broth and stir it in with a whisk until the mixture is smooth. Pour the sour cream mixture into the soup and mix everything together completely.
4. Peel and seed the cucumber, and chop it coarsely. Peel the eggs and chop them rather coarsely as well. Add the cucumber and 3 or 4 of the chopped eggs to the soup. Reserve the remaining eggs for garnish.
5. Finally, stir in the beer. Taste the soup and correct the seasoning to your own taste, adding more vinegar or sugar to get the right sweet-sour balance—but go easy! A little bit of vinegar or sugar will go a long way.
6. Serve the soup very cold, in chilled bowls if possible, and put a little ice cube in each bowl. Pass the reserved chopped eggs separately, to be sprinkled on top.
