Hamburger Soup

Hamburger Soup

Hi everybody :)

Happy February! It's has been chilly here for these past few days. I been hiding under my covers refusing to get out of bed :). On cold days I like to make some of my old stand by recipes.  You know, the kind that don't take to long to prepare but taste like you spent all day in the kitchen. 

Today stand by recipe is Hamburger Soup. It's one of my favorites because it's easily adjustable to whatever vegetables you have on hand. Here's what I did...

Hamburger Soup
3 - 4 lbs. ground chuck
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper 
1 medium onion, sliced
6 cups water
1 tsp. Better than Bouillon Beef Base (reduce sodium) 
4 cups potatoes, peeled and cut-up
2 cups carrots, peeled and sliced
1 bay leaf
1 pack Lipton soup mix + 1/4 cup water + 1 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch or flour
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen baby sweet peas or okra*

Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper. Brown meat in pot over med heat. Drained. 

Add onion, saute until tender. 

Add water, beef base, potatoes, carrots and bay leaf. Cover and simmer over low heat until vegetables are tender; about 25 minutes.

Mix soup mix, cornstarch, and water. Add to the pot along with tomatoes and peas. 

Cook about 5 minutes longer or until thicken.  Remove bay leaf before serving.

*If using okra, add at the end of cooking time. Cover and let sit for about 5 minutes; the heat for the soup will cook the okra.  

This is great serve with buttery hot cornbread.

ENJOY! Come again...
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