I love to make soup, and I like to think I got a soup-making gene from my maternal grandmother, who taught me to cook.
I doubt if she made it exactly the same way every time either – I know my pots tend to vary by what’s available, but I try to keep “the makings” on hand. Soup bones are definitely not as easily found as they once were, but we’ve found a store than can be counted on to have slices of beef shank, beef neck and other good stock basics, and I’ve usually got enough for a pot stashed in the freezer, so that when the mood hits, I’m ready to go.
I started this pot yesterday evening, browned the meat and bones, then let them cook with an onion, tomato juice and a couple of bay leaves in the crockpot overnight – it smelled pretty good this morning! π
Today, after removing the meat and bones, I added more diced onion, a cut-up bunch of kale, frozen mixed vegetables, a can each of beans and stewed tomatoes, and some cooked pasta (I remember her using potatoes, but Himself prefers pasta), then seasoned to taste, and put in the cut-up meat at the last. As usual, the batch expanded to fill the pot, so I had some to share, some for the freezer, and some for now – yum!
It seems like we’ve had a lot of really gorgeous evening skies lately, or maybe I’ve just been paying more attention …
August 18, 2008 at 5:21 am
You know when I first started reading I thought “it’s too early for soup”, but that pot looks so good. You might be onto something here, Joy! And, haven’t the sunsets been exquisite lately. I think it’s because we can enjoy them because it’s not so beastly hot; – )
August 18, 2008 at 7:57 am
It is getting to be soup season – which is too bad, since I haven’t had enough tomatoes for gazpacho yet, and now I’m thinking of hot soup! Yours looks fabulous.
August 18, 2008 at 11:49 am
That soup looks heavenly.
August 18, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Yum!
That soup is gorgeous! I cannot wait until it’s cool enough to really cook again.
August 20, 2008 at 7:26 pm
That looks delicious! I like making (up) soups too. It is hard to get the bones nowadays! I’m lucky to live near an Amish butcher and can get ham hocks when I need them for split pea or black bean soup. It makes all the difference.