Winter Hibernation Soup

I'm a bit late in the season for this post and recipe, but a couple of weeks ago when it was snowy cold here, I was busy working at home and didn't want to venture out to the grocery store. It felt like the perfect day for soup though, and so I challenged myself to only use ingredients that I could forage from my pantry, refrigerator, and freezer. All of mine were well-stocked so it was fairly easy to do and the soup turned out great! It was really tasty and my husband approved too.

Next time you start to head to the grocery store, take a minute instead to figure out what you might be able to make from what you already have on hand. It's easier than you might think, and certainly more economical. My recipe follows:

The beauty of this "recipe" is that everyone's version can be unique. Hunt through your own freezer, refrigerator, and pantry for some meat, vegetables, broth, spices and herbs to make your own version.

WINTER HIBERNATION SOUP (Shelley's version)

Ingredients:

Freezer:

Buffalo meat patties (frozen) 16 oz.

1 12 oz. bag of frozen corn

Refrigerator:

Onion

Garlic

Celery

Parsnips

Carrots

V8 Juice (low-sodium)

Pantry:

Carton of Beef Stock

Can of diced tomatoes (undrained)

Can of chopped Portabello mushrooms (drained)

Can of Italian green beans

Spices: black pepper, red pepper flakes, 2 bay leaves, thyme

In a dutch oven pot, pour a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Chop up onion, garlic, and celery and saute for a few minutes until lightly golden. Meanwhile peel and chop parsnips and carrots, add to vegetables. Pour 1 cup of V8 juice over vegetables and turn heat to low. Pour in carton of beef broth, can of diced tomatoes, beans, mushrooms and corn. Add seasonings as desired. Stir well, cover, and simmer on stovetop for a couple of hours on lowest heat of put dutch oven in 250 degree oven.

Before serving, brown thawed buffalo meat in pan on stove. Drain off any fat. Add the cook meat to the soup and stir.

Serve in large bowls with crusty sourdough bread on the side.

Comments

[Sharolyn]

Now what time was dinner? I think I missed that detail!