As you may have gathered from my sister Doe, I am not a menu planner. Is this a problem for me? Yes, yes it is. But I am one of those people who has to be hungry for something in order to want to make it for dinner.
Has this been a problem for my family? Yes, yes it has. Many a night I am just a girl standing in front of the refrigerator asking it to tell me what to make for dinner. I may have a lot of ingredients, but no ideas.
Every few years I’m inspired by Doe’s menu planning and give it a try. I start out weak, work up to mediocracy, and then fizzle out. It’s not my spiritual gift! That’s why I love this soup. I usually have the ingredients on hand (because I use whatever I have on hand) and this time of year it’s something I crave often!
I call it Whatever Ya Got Soup
The very best thing about this soup? You really do use whatever you have on hand. Do you have some leftover green beans and corn from yesterday’s dinner? Throw them in the pot. A random can of sliced carrots in the pantry? Throw them in the pot, too! A bag in the bottom of the freezer with only a few frozen peas? You got it, toss em in!
Maybe you don’t have any ground beef but you’ve got some kidney beans or some great northern beans–that’s fine–just substitute the beans for the beef.
Most any pasta will do for this soup, even broken up spaghetti pieces, but if you don’t have pasta, just throw in a diced raw potato or two.
You could put just about anything in and it makes a nice hearty meal, especially served alongside some yummy bread! One of my favorite bread recipes to make is from the cookbook “New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.”
This is a great book with a lot of wonderful recipes and most are very simple. I use the Master Recipe and if I keep a batch of dough in the fridge I can whip up a couple of small loaves in about an hour and a half. It makes a lovely rustic round loaf.
Hopefully, if you’re a non-planner like me, I’ve given you a little hope and maybe some dinner inspiration. Let us know if you give this soup or bread a try!!
XOXO,
Shan
Shan’s Whatever Ya Got Soup
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 5 cups liquid beef broth, water, or a mix of both
- 1 package onion soup mix dry
- 2-3 cups mixed vegetables frozen,canned, or both
- 28 ounce can tomatoes diced, chopped, or stewed
- 1-2 cups uncooked pasta any short pasta will work
- grated parmesean for topping bowls
Instructions
- In a large pot brown the ground beef, drain, and return to the cooking pot.
- Add 5 cups of whatever combination of liquid you've chosen and the soup mix. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.
- Allow the broth and cooked beef to simmer over medium heat for 30-40 minutes then add the canned tomatoes and vegetables. Cook unitl the vegetables are your desired tenderness.
- Add the uncooked pasta (I usually use elbow noodles) and cook al dente.
- Ladle into bowls and top with a little grated parmesan cheese.