My Veggie Soup Recipe

Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:
1 medium head of cabbage
1 medium onions
3 large cans of store brand tomato puree or 3 large cans of beef broth
4-6 medium potatoes (noodles can also be used)
2# ground beef (kielbasa, chicken or beef roast can be used)
1 package store brand frozen corn, 1 package store brand peas
2 cans green beans (not French cut, or 1# fresh green beans)
You can also add the following:
Zucchini
Green pepper
Hot peppers
Cauliflower
Broccoli

This recipe makes about 12 quarts.
I start with my 12-quart stock pan. You can make less, if you choose. I start with 2 quarts of tomato puree, or 3 big cans of beef broth. The tomato puree can be made several ways for barely any expense. You can use 3 tomato pastes and water. I use Hunts with Italian herbs. Your beef stock can also be store brand. Cook this at medium high.
To this base, I add the cabbage cut in bite size pieces. This mixture will take a while to cook down, so do the next step—peel your potatoes, cut them in two sizes. Bite size will dissolve into base to thicken, and a little larger size to cook with the soup. Snap your green beans or use store brand canned. Canned is cheaper but fresh will taste better and take longer to cook. Your choice.

Chop your onions fine. You want them to cook into the soup base and be tasted not seen.

Your corn can be frozen store brand and your peas frozen, also a budget saver. I suggest store brands because the taste of the soup is yours to choose and store brands are budget savers. Now, see how much the cabbage has cooked down. You want it to be cooked down into the base stock. Remember to constantly stir your soup to avoid sticking.

You need for the tomato base to boil with the cabbage before you add more veggies. I keep leftover veggies from meals in a zip lock bag in the freezer. Even if you only have a quarter cup of a veggie, save it.

Brown your ground beef or your choice of meat. Be careful not to use meat that has fat. This will make the soup greasy. The tomato base and cabbage should be ready for adding more veggies. Add the rest of your veggies. Get everything hot and taste your soup.

Seasoning is easy. Now, for a Mexican taste, add about 4 tablespoons of Taco Seasoning. For a milder taste, salt, pepper and garlic is good. I like to use McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning. It is great. It has coarse pepper and salt, red pepper, garlic and paprika. Really good seasoning for baked chicken and fish.

This will be ready in about 2 more hours. I like to serve this with a sprinkling of shredded cheese on top.

I freeze this in quart containers.

Remember vegetable soup is your choice of veggies--make it your own

Copywriter: Karen B. Cardwell 2012.   Email me at: cradwell.kc@Gmail.Com 

 Tweet me at: Karen Cardwell@blairie12.

 Original Artwork Images by Tom Wilson.