Vegetable Beef Soup

If you’re too busy to make an elaborate meal but crave for a slow-cooked stew, you can make a hearty and healthy vegetable beef soup in your crock pot; it’s one of the easiest things to do. The best thing about this recipe, adapted from the Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook by Dawn J. Ranck and Phyllis Pellman Good, is that you simply throw the ingredients in the pot and leave it to do its magic. You let the meat cook for six hours in the water and tomatoes while you work or go and do something else. You then add the vegetables and let them cook for another two hours, and you don’t have to be there waiting for it to cook since the crock pot includes a timer and won’t overcook the meal. The result is tender meat in a flavorful and aromatic stew of vegetables.

Ingredients

1 lb. round steak (cut into bite-sized or slightly larger pieces)

can (14 ½ oz.) diced tomatoes

cups water

potatoes (cubed)

onions (chopped)

celery stalks (chopped)

carrots (chopped)

beef bouillon cubes

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Pinch of salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 ½ cups mixed vegetables

Preparation:

1. Put the steak, tomatoes, and water into the crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 6 hours.

2. Add the potatoes, onions, celery, carrots, bullion, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and mixed vegetables. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.