Beef and Garden Vegetable Soup

A pot of yummy deliciousness, that's what this soup is. Good for a chilly day when a bowl of warm soup is just what you need, or when you want to use up your fresh summer veggies. Goes well with a loaf of crusty Italian bread. You can put pretty much any vegetable combination in this soup. I have used chopped fresh okra; it's good for a nice pop in your mouth. You can also use pearled barley in place of the oro pasta. Just add it to the soup when you put in the veggies, and an extra cup of water. I like that it makes a big pot, because it's even better as leftovers.

• Preparation Time: 20 mins
• Cooking Time: 60 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins
• Calories: 389 Calories

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 2 bay leaves
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 3 carrots, diced
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 2 quarts beef stock
• 3 ears fresh corn, kernels cut from cob
• ½ head cabbage, chopped
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning blend
• ½ cup frozen petite peas
• 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into bite-size pieces
• 4 small red potatoes, diced
• ½ pound fresh green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
• ⅓ cup uncooked orzo pasta

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Heat the olive oil in a stock pot over medium-high heat; cook the beef in the hot oil until completely browned, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the onion and bay leaves, reduce heat to medium, cook until the onion is softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Use a wooden spoon to scrape any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Stir the carrots, potatoes, and beef stock into the mixture; bring to a simmer and cook until the vegetables are just barely tender, about 5 minutes.

Step 2

Stir the green beans, corn, peas, zucchini, cabbage, tomatoes, Italian seasoning blend, garlic powder, salt, and pepper into the beef mixture. Cover the stock pot, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer the soup until the beef is cooked through and the vegetables are tender, 45 to 50 minutes.

Step 3

Stir the orzo pasta into the soup; replace the cover to the stock pot and continue cooking until the pasta is tender, about 5 minutes more.