It is cold out and the vegetable garden is covered in snow. Rather than salads, it’s time for a warm comforting soup.
I’m hitting the weights pretty hard as part of my winter routine, and I just started back at roller derby. That, combined with the cold makes me want to EAT.
I of course, love comfort food, but also need to keep it relatively healthful. I go for the soups and stews. Soup is such an easy way to make a home cooked meal with whole food budget friendly ingredients.
Some grass fed local beef and dry beans add the hardiness. Then we just flesh it out with what’s on hand.
Ultimate Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup
- 2 lbs grassfed ground beef
- 4 large carrots sliced
- 2 yellow onions diced
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- 2 cups white navy beans dry
- 1 cup garbanzo beans dry
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1.5 cups corn frozen or canned
- 2 cans (14 oz each) diced tomatoes
- 1 cup fresh chopped spinach
- 1/3 cup brown rice
- 1 cup fresh chopped basil
- 1/2 cup chopped green onion
- 2 tablespoons dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon dried crushed red hot pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground White pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon Ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dry thyme
- 1 teaspoon dry sage
- Salt to taste
- 1 1/4 gallon water
- Optional 1-2 Yukon potatoes
1-2 days before cooking, place beans in large bowl with 6 cups water. Leave on counter at room temperature to soak and ferment.
On morning of cooking, rough chop onions and place in large pot on medium heat. Saute and stir until they begin Browning and caramelizing.
Add ground beef and sliced carrots. Use spatula to break up beef and cook through. Add a tiny bit of water as needed to keep it from burning.
Once meat is cooked, strain your soaking beans in the sink and add drained beans to pot. Add gallon of water, canned tomatoes, and dry spices to pot. Salt to taste. Turn to medium-low and let lightly simmer for 4 hours. Add corn and peas and let lightly simmer on low heat two more hours.
(Add optional potatoes one hour before rice)
Two hours after corn and peas, add rice. Let cook 30 minutes or until rice is cooked.
Add fresh spinach and fresh basil. Let simmer 20 minutes.
Dish up, about 2 cups in large group bowl, and garnish with diced green onion. Add any needed salt.
Also check out:
Semi-Homemade & Obviously Awesome Chicken Noodle Soup