Mama's Rassolnik

So, my parents came to town, stayed for a week and headed back home. But i still have the leftovers of the Russian Rassolnik soup in the fridge! My mom made it, and it came out beautifully yummy. This is the soup of my childhood, the ultimate comfort food for the cold weather days. The contents included: cooked barley, onions, potatoes, carrots, celery, chopped pickles, and beet stems (the latter is not a regular ingredient for a Rassolnik, but it was something that we had in the fridge that had to be used up). With some added salt and pepper, and a low sodium chicken stock cube, this came out to be as good or even better than i remember. Back home they ate it with a dab of sour scream on top, but i always preferred it "naked" and not cloudy. I have attempted cooking this myself in the past, but i don't think mine ever came out as good... I guess some things require practice, practice, practice...