Vegetable Beef Soup

Vegetable Beef Soup

Posted by Brit

It's cold.  It's soup weather.  I had some things in the freezer and fridge and decided I should throw this together after work.  I paired it with a turkey swiss sandwich on a toasted croissant.  I love croissants.

I made this in a dutch over so it could all be done in one pot.  I think if you fried the beef first and then threw it all in a crockpot it would work well too

Vegetable Beef Soup

1/2 lb. Ground Beef (I used 93% meat, 7% fat.  Ground turkey would also work).
16 oz. frozen vegetables of your choice, chop to bite size if necessary (I used half a bag Kroger Spring Blend mixed vegetables, but they have several varieties.)
1 Lg Potato (or 2 Sm), cubed small
3 Scallions (or 1 Sm onion), chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, minced
2 C. Finely Pureed Tomato (Luckily a friend gave us this in advance, but I would suggest throwing tomatoes in the food processor and processing until the tomato is more of a sauce, adding water as necessary.)
1 Can (Sm./14 oz.) Low Sodium Chicken Broth
Salt, Pepper, Herbs and Spices to taste
1 Tbsp Olive Oil, Vegetable Oil, etc.

1. Start by frying the beef in your dutch oven.  If you use low fat beer you shouldn't have to strain it.  Once it's almost done frying sprinkle salt and pepper on top and mix while the beef finishes cooking.  Once done, remove beef from pan.

 
2.  Next saute scallions on medium until they start to brown then add minced garlic.  Once both have browned add can of broth and turn heat up to high.  Throw in potato and bring to a boil.  Add pureed tomato and continue to bring to a boil again.

3.  Add the frozen vegetables and the already cooked ground beef, and continue to boil.  It shouldn't take long for frozen vegetable to soften.

4.  Add seasoning of choice.  If you don't use low sodium chicken broth, taste broth prior to adding salt.  I put plenty of salt and pepper.  I added Oregano and Brandon added some Thyme, Tumeric, Cumin, Garlic and Onion powders to taste.  Be careful not to put too much seasoning in right away as flavors will develop while boiling.  I believe soup is always better the second day and is packed with much more flavor.

5.  Cover and let soup boil so seasoning gets hot and blends into soup.  Boil for about 15 minutes and taste soup again to see that the flavor is good.  Add more seasoning, salt, or pepper if necessary.

Remove from heat and serve.  We crumbled some Aged Sharp White Cheddar on top.  Three of us had a small - medium sized bowl along with our sandwich, and there was plenty more soup for left overs.

Have any suggestions?  Let me know!