Hamburger Vegetable Soup

Serves 4

This is a recipe my mother made when she wanted a quick vegetable soup. It is very good and easy, even though there are a lot of ingredients. Make it the day you need it or up to three days ahead, perhaps on a weekend, and refrigerate to serve on a busy weeknight. For an equally delicious soup based on this recipe, see the Turkey Vegetable Soup in the similar and related recipes.

Ingredients

• Olive oil, about 1 tablespoon
• 1 pound ground beef, preferably chuck or sirloin
• 1 medium onion, diced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 large cloves garlic, minced (see notes below)
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) whole tomatoes, broken up, with juice
• 2 cups low-sodium beef broth
• 4 cups water
• Dehydrated beefy onion soup mix, optional (see notes below)
• 2 packages (about 16-ounces each) frozen mixed vegetables
• 1 can (about 8 ounces) whole kernel corn
• 1 can (about 8 ounces) lima beans
• 1 can (about 15 ounces) chickpeas
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat just enough oil to prevent sticking in large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and brown, breaking apart as cooking. Add onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, garlic and oregano and cook another minute. Add the tomatoes, broth and water; bring to a boil and add a little onion mix. Stir well to combine. Add the remaining vegetables; bring back to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook about 45 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding more onion mix or oregano if needed. Serve immediately, passing cheese separately, or keep warm over a low burner for up to 30 minutes.

Notes: If you use beef broth, you might not need much, if any of the onion soup mix. Taste before adding. Mom sometimes used chicken broth instead of beef broth, in which case she usually added a whole envelope of onion mix for the beefy flavor. When she was very busy, and before fresh garlic was widely available, she used garlic powder. Go easy on the salt since both canned broth and onion soup mix, even the lower-sodium varieties, are high in sodium. This soup freezes very well.