Chicken soup gets all of the press, but vegetable beef soup is good for the soul, too.
I seem to be on a soup kick, but in my defense, soup is good food. Besides, we went to Auntie Ev and Uncle Ray’s house again to visit with them and Auntie ‘Leenie. See, we took soup last time, too. They are big soup fans, and I’d really rather they enjoy our soup than Panera soup.
I learned a new thing, although I should have known it anyway. Stock works out quite well in the oven. We went to the NC Farmer’s Market in Raleigh last weekend and bought some soup bones from a locally grown, happy grass-fed cow. We didn’t actually buy the bones from the cow, we bought them from the nice lady who killed the cow (or at least works with the people who killed the cow). I remembered at 3pm on Thursday that we were supposed to be taking soup on Saturday morning, so I threw the browned the bones with some tomato paste and then threw them in my big old pot along with onion, celery, thyme, peppercorns, garlic and cold water. I brought it up to a simmer on the stove and let it go for about 5 hours, skimming off any goo that rose to the surface. I realized I would get the best stock if I let it go for several more hours, so I just covered the pot with foil and threw it in a 200F oven overnight. Worked like a charm. I ended up with beautifully rich stock that hadn’t reduced at all. All I had to do was skim off all the fat, and I was good to go.
Last Minute Vegetable Beef Soup with Millet
- olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- red pepper flake, to taste
- salt and pepper, to taste
- Italian seasoning, to taste
- 3 quarts beef stock, preferably homemade (But no one will arrest you if you use store bought. I don’t think)
- sirloin, cut into small cubes and browned with just some salt and pepper. I think I had about 8-10 oz, so that’s how much I used.
- about 1/3 cup tomato sauce (mine was homemade w/Italian herbs and stuff. I just felt the soup needed something).
- one bag o’ frozen vegetables–mine had green beans, corn, carrot and peas, I think
- one bag o’ frozen pepper strips–yes, you can use fresh, ditto for any veggies
- 1 baking potato, cut into cute little cubes
- large handful millet (you could use whatever you want: wee pasta stars, barley, rice–I just wanted a whole grain component. You could also just leave it out entirely).
- red wine vinegar (to brighten the flavors since I was trying to use less salt)
- lime juice (ditto)
Sweat onions, pepper flake and Italian seasoning in oil. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
Add stock and tomato sauce. Simmer for awhile. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Add browned beef cubes. Add veggies and simmer for awhile. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Throw in the millet and cook until it’s tender (this took about 15 minutes).
Use vinegar and/or citrus juice to brighten the flavors.
Notes:
- As always, this is just a recipe template:
- sweat aromatics
- add stock
- add veggies and meat
- season and serve
- Voila: soup’s on.
- You could make a fantastic fajita soup by upping the lime juice, using strips of beef, peppers and onions and seasoning with chili powder and some Mexican oregano. Grate some pepper jack over each bowlful, and you’re in business.
- Now I wish I had done that. Oh well. Auntie Ev, Uncle Ray and Auntie ‘Leenie probably wouldn’t have liked it. I’ll try it when it’s just The Beloved and Me.
- Auntie Leenie’s birthday was April 13. She’s 89. She’s the baby of the family. Happy Birthday, Auntie ‘Leenie.
And that’s about the size of things. As moving gets closer, posts might be more hit and miss. We’ll see, though. I do like to post and What Not. If any of you guys have any ideas for topics, let me know in the comments section, and I’ll see what I can do.
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