Vegetable Soup

My mother made the best vegetable soup in the whole world. Mine is similar and very good, but hers was great. And of course, she didn’t follow a recipe or write it down. Mostly it was just what she had on hand, although she always started with bacon, and since both of our sons don’t eat meat now, I nearly always omit it. But it really is better with the bacon.

I don’t follow a written recipe either, but I will try to give approximations. This is a very flexible and forgiving soup; if I don’t have one ingredient, maybe I have something else that will work. For instance, I like to add about 1/2 c. of barley after it’s boiling to thicken it. If I’m out of barley, then I grate a raw potato. Also, I like a variety of colors, so I put in corn (frozen or canned), or maybe some chopped yellow squash. For something green, it’s green beans, peas or broccoli. When using broccoli, I don’t add it until about the last 1/2 hour or it will turn to mush; very unpleasant. When our youngest son was a teenager and nearly all he ate was meat, surprisingly, this soup was one of his favorite meals. Inexplicably, vegetables that he wouldn’t have touched if served separately, were eaten along with everything else. I even used to sneak in a turnip once in awhile because it looks about like potato in the general mix. So, here goes:

VEGETABLE SOUP

1-2 T. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

salt

pepper

herbs and spices (optional)

paprika

chili powder

oregano

~

3 carrots, scraped and chopped

Water

Tomato product: sauce, paste, canned tomatoes

6+ potatoes (I like a lot of them) peeled and chopped

yellow vegetables, chopped if necessary

green vegetables, chopped if necessary

1. Turn burner to medium heat and add olive oil.

2. When oil is hot – but not smoking – onion, celery, & garlic.

3. After vegetables become translucent, add salt and pepper, paprika,

chili powder, & oregano.

4. Add carrots.

5. Pour in about 2 quarts of water and tomato product.

6. Add potatoes, yellow and green vegetables.

7. Bring to a boil and add barley or grated potato.

7. Stir occasionally. It will stick and burn if left completely unattended (especially if you add barley).

8. Set heat on low and cook for about 2 hours.

Notes:

~This is a very nourishing, thrifty and comforting soup. For a small family, it will make several meals.

~If you want to add bacon, fry it first, then crumble and use the bacon grease to saute the onion, celery and garlic.

~If you use canned tomatoes, the broth will be thinner, of course. Tomato paste will make a thick broth, more stew-like. When I use paste, I cut the vegetables in bigger chunks.

~Leftover spaghetti sauce can even be used for the tomato base. If so adjust the other herbs/spices accordingly.

~Add water while it’s cooking if it looks like it needs it, or you like it thinner.

~Use your own judgment about what leftover vegetables you would like to add. Personally, with the exception of lima beans, I don’t care for beans in vegetable soup but if you do, go ahead and put them in.

~Omit all the herbs and spices if you prefer the flavor of the vegetables alone. Or, if you want to make it more like minestrone, eliminate the chili powder and add basil and beans.

~I’ve never been successful in adding macaroni or rice to this recipe, but if you know just when to add them, try it. Neither one should be put in for the whole cooking time.

~My mother added shredded cabbage, but this is something else I can’t seem to get right. Maybe I’ve tried to use too much. Maybe she just put in about a cup of shred. It was very good in hers.

~Even though our sons are grown and gone from home, I still make a large kettle of this soup. It’s actually better the second day after it’s been refrigerated overnight. And it’s so easy to just re-heat a couple of bowls for lunch on Saturday when we’ve been working out in the yard or come in from church on Sunday.

~On subsequent days, it will look like it needs water added before reheating, but only add a little, if any at all. It becomes more liquid as it heats.

~If reheating on the stovetop instead of a microwave, stir fairly constantly while heating. It sticks and burns easily.

~Cornbread is the best accompaniment, but cheese and crackers are good, too. My husband likes it with hot, buttered toast.