I love soup. I love to make it, eat it, and invent new ones. My Mom made this one recipe often when I was growing up called "Autumn Soup". She belonged to this trendy Betty Crocker recipe card club in the 1980's. She would get recipes in the mail monthly on cards and store them in this golden-yellow plastic box with a hinged lid. I've seen these recipe box sets from time to time in flea markets and yard sales. There sure were some hanky 1980's recipes in there!
But I liked the soup. I've changed it around a little, added some extras or substituted other ingredients as the contents of my pantry and fridge would dictate, but the base is pretty much the same.
The basic recipe is what follows, although I will finish with variations and suggestions that make this soup better than what Betty Crocker herself would have made.
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
4 cups water
1 cup cut-up carrots
1 cup diced celery
1 cup cubed pared potatoes
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon bottled brown bouquet sauce
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 bay leaf
1/8 teaspoon basil
6 tomatoes*
*1 can (28 ounces) tomatoes (with liquid) can be substituted for the fresh tomatoes. Reduce water to 3 cups. Stir in tomatoes with remaining ingredients; heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 20 minutes. The canned tomatoes break apart and give a rosy color.
Directions
In a large saucepan, cook and stir meat until brown. Drain off fat. Cook and stir onions with meat until onions are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients except tomatoes; heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 20 minutes. Add tomatoes; cover and simmer 10 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender.
Ok. So that's it. Pretty bland, eh? So let me tell you how I make it so much better. First of all, forget adding water. Use beef stock instead. Homemade, canned, boxed... whatever. Just don't add 2 teaspoons of salt! Also, you can easily substitute the potatoes with rice, orzo, egg noodles, or my favorite- BARLEY! When I made this yesterday, I omitted the potatoes and added nice chunks of cabbage, and about a cup or so of sliced button mushrooms during the last 5 to 10 minutes of cooking. If you add mushrooms, do so towards the end because they shrink up so much. I was going to throw in some orzo, but my pot was so full of vegetables I didn't need to.
Often times when I make a crock-pot roast on Sunday, I will have a large chunk of it left over. I will use the roast, and whatever veggies that were cooked along with it and throw in the additional ingredients needed to make enough soup. I throw in the juices and all from the roast! The roast shreds itself as it cooks in the liquids in the soup pot, and it is especially delicious and hearty with barley.
I also use this same basic recipe using leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, but use chicken or turkey stock instead. Same goes with chicken- use leftover chicken or a rotisserie.
I have NEVER used tomatoes in this recipe that didn't come from a can. The whole tomatoes are wonderful, although definitely squish them up a little. They do no seem to break apart while cooking as the recipe suggests- I am speaking from experience.
I have used all sorts of vegetables in this recipe; cauliflower, squash, eggplant, whatever I might have in the fridge that seems to compliment the basic soup recipe will work. Or, if I am short of an assortment of veggies or short on time, throw in a few cups of frozen mixed vegetables 10 minutes or so before it's ready. And think about adding some minced garlic, or fresh herbs! I seem to always have flat leaf parsley on hand, it is great stirred in as is Basil.
Just make sure there is plenty of fresh bread available; French bread, Rye, Italian. Or homemade fresh from the oven. With plenty of butter, of course!
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Reflections And Resolutions
If you've ever read any of my blog entries written around the start of any New Year, you'll know that I am not one for Resolutions. Why set myself up for disappointment? I know I'm not going to work out more (or at all...) or quit eating chocolate. Or cheese. Or Chex Mix or any of my favorites foods that begin with "CH".
If I resolve to do anything at all this year, it is to have a year as fabulous as the one that's just passed. On the professional side of things, work has been both rewarding and fun. My day-to-day job has kept me busy and entertained all at once. My own venture into business has gone even better than I initially planned; we've acquired several more properties and I've gained some wonderful friendships and business relationships in the process. I've grown professionally and worked harder for rewards that have not necessarily been of the financial kind.
My cup runneth over with gratitude. I am thankful for my job, my husbands' job, the success of my business, and so on. But more than that, I'm thankful to be an American, where I have the opportunity to be as successful and happy as I choose, and to have the freedom to work as hard as I want at achieving it.
I like to measure my own level of success by comparing each passing year to the one before it, and I don't mean only financially. If I see growth in my marriage and relationship with my son, and in social relationships and my profession, then I know it's been a banner year. Todd and I are as close as ever- God has blessed me with the most wonderful husband. We will be celebrating our 16 year wedding anniversary in 2014. I can tell you each year has been more wonderful than the one before it. Maybe I don't know all the secrets to a successful marriage, but something is working. I like to think it's called compromise. And a sense of humor.
TJ is just about halfway through his 4th grade year, and something I am really grateful for is simply that God chose us be his parents. Our little boy gives us joy, laughter and love every day. He is growing to be such a fascinating little man- so full of curiosity, but also so delightfully smart and talented that I have to wonder if they gave me back the right baby in the delivery room. Well, if it wasn't for the fact that he looks and acts just as goofy as his Dad, I might have to wonder. I am grateful he is growing up in a wonderful school and community full of families that hold the same values and dedication to their children's education that we do.
2013 has confirmed just as the four years before it that relocating to Pennsylvania was the right decision for us. Todd is experiencing life being loved by a huge extended family. People who love him just because he is who he is, and not for what he is able to do for them. He has made his own new and wonderful friends through coaching, work, church... walking down the street- you name it.
Being close to my family has brought me to realize how incredibly lucky I am that I have the parents and brothers that I do, not to mention the dozens of cousins and aunts and uncles. My Mom and Dad, with their own quirkiness are the best parents anyone could have. It's nice knowing they are close by and I can visit at the drop of a hat. And my brothers- well... let's just say fart jokes and Police Academy quotations find their way into any conversation we share. Thank God their wives are not too prudent to laugh at "Someone call a veterinarian!"
We lost my beloved Pappy this year, but I smile when I think that he was on this earth for 96 years and passed away peacefully in his own home surrounded by his family. It's amazing to me when I think of all he experienced in his lifetime. He did not care to have an extravagant lifestyle or fill his home with modern conveniences. He was a simple farmer who taught me that all you really need in life is a front porch and a pretty view. And that there is joy and fulfillment in chirping birds, and simple conversation with those you love. That is how I will remember him.
I am looking forward to 2014. I'm anxious to get busy expanding in business and perhaps continuing on with more classes online. I'm looking forward to another busy summer of ballgames and track meets, and summer nights by the fire and camping out in Dad's backyard again. It's -5 degrees as I write this, so please bear with me while I dream of summer.
If I have a resolution at all (which I don't), it is to make an effort to try to be more sensitive to others needs- others outside of my family. I'm not quite as charitable as I once was to strangers, and I believe it's time I start passing on God's blessings. And I am making a conscientious effort to stop worrying about our troubled country and it's sad state of affairs. But that's a whole other issue for a whole other blog post.
And so, with all of this now written and available for plagiarism by anonymous readers and weirdos in the cyber world everywhere- I wish you the best for 2014!
If I resolve to do anything at all this year, it is to have a year as fabulous as the one that's just passed. On the professional side of things, work has been both rewarding and fun. My day-to-day job has kept me busy and entertained all at once. My own venture into business has gone even better than I initially planned; we've acquired several more properties and I've gained some wonderful friendships and business relationships in the process. I've grown professionally and worked harder for rewards that have not necessarily been of the financial kind.
My cup runneth over with gratitude. I am thankful for my job, my husbands' job, the success of my business, and so on. But more than that, I'm thankful to be an American, where I have the opportunity to be as successful and happy as I choose, and to have the freedom to work as hard as I want at achieving it.
I like to measure my own level of success by comparing each passing year to the one before it, and I don't mean only financially. If I see growth in my marriage and relationship with my son, and in social relationships and my profession, then I know it's been a banner year. Todd and I are as close as ever- God has blessed me with the most wonderful husband. We will be celebrating our 16 year wedding anniversary in 2014. I can tell you each year has been more wonderful than the one before it. Maybe I don't know all the secrets to a successful marriage, but something is working. I like to think it's called compromise. And a sense of humor.
TJ is just about halfway through his 4th grade year, and something I am really grateful for is simply that God chose us be his parents. Our little boy gives us joy, laughter and love every day. He is growing to be such a fascinating little man- so full of curiosity, but also so delightfully smart and talented that I have to wonder if they gave me back the right baby in the delivery room. Well, if it wasn't for the fact that he looks and acts just as goofy as his Dad, I might have to wonder. I am grateful he is growing up in a wonderful school and community full of families that hold the same values and dedication to their children's education that we do.
2013 has confirmed just as the four years before it that relocating to Pennsylvania was the right decision for us. Todd is experiencing life being loved by a huge extended family. People who love him just because he is who he is, and not for what he is able to do for them. He has made his own new and wonderful friends through coaching, work, church... walking down the street- you name it.
Being close to my family has brought me to realize how incredibly lucky I am that I have the parents and brothers that I do, not to mention the dozens of cousins and aunts and uncles. My Mom and Dad, with their own quirkiness are the best parents anyone could have. It's nice knowing they are close by and I can visit at the drop of a hat. And my brothers- well... let's just say fart jokes and Police Academy quotations find their way into any conversation we share. Thank God their wives are not too prudent to laugh at "Someone call a veterinarian!"
We lost my beloved Pappy this year, but I smile when I think that he was on this earth for 96 years and passed away peacefully in his own home surrounded by his family. It's amazing to me when I think of all he experienced in his lifetime. He did not care to have an extravagant lifestyle or fill his home with modern conveniences. He was a simple farmer who taught me that all you really need in life is a front porch and a pretty view. And that there is joy and fulfillment in chirping birds, and simple conversation with those you love. That is how I will remember him.
I am looking forward to 2014. I'm anxious to get busy expanding in business and perhaps continuing on with more classes online. I'm looking forward to another busy summer of ballgames and track meets, and summer nights by the fire and camping out in Dad's backyard again. It's -5 degrees as I write this, so please bear with me while I dream of summer.
If I have a resolution at all (which I don't), it is to make an effort to try to be more sensitive to others needs- others outside of my family. I'm not quite as charitable as I once was to strangers, and I believe it's time I start passing on God's blessings. And I am making a conscientious effort to stop worrying about our troubled country and it's sad state of affairs. But that's a whole other issue for a whole other blog post.
And so, with all of this now written and available for plagiarism by anonymous readers and weirdos in the cyber world everywhere- I wish you the best for 2014!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
