Easy Vegetable Soup / Crock Pot (Or Not!)

By :( on January 11, 2013

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Ingredients

    1. 2 cups chopped well-rinsed leeks, white and light green parts only ( discard dark green tops)
    2. 2 cups celery, diced
    3. 2 tablespoons olive oil
    4. 3 garlic cloves, minced
    5. 1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, stripped from stem
    6. 2 fresh bay leaves
    7. 2 quarts vegetable stock (I used one of each) or 2 quarts beef stock ( I used one of each)
    8. 1 quart spaghetti sauce
    9. 2 1/2 cups diced turnips
    10. 2 cups diced carrots
    11. 2 cups sliced fresh green beans
    12. salt or salt substitute
    13. black pepper
    14. cayenne pepper sauce (optional)
    15. 1/2 cup red bell pepper, seeded and diced
    16. 2/3 cup frozen corn
    17. 1/3 cup frozen peas
    18. 1 lb fully cooked meatballs (optional) or 1 lb chopped cooked beef (optional) or 1 lb other cooked meat (optional)
    19. 1 cup uncooked macaroni noodles
    20. 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

  1. Cooks Note: Rinse the leek well in a basin of water to remove any possible grit.
  2. Crock Pot Cooking Directions: Add all ingredients (except macaroni and Parmesan cheese) to crock pot and stir. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours. At end of cooking time, add macaroni to crock pot and cook on high until noodles are tender, or just add hot cooked noodles at the end of cooking (along with Parmesan cheese).
  3. Saute leek and celery in olive oil in a soup pot or dutch oven until soft, 10 minutes or so.
  4. Add the garlic and seasonings and stir until very fragrant.
  5. Stir in the stock and spaghetti sauce and heat to a boil.
  6. Add turnips, carrots and green beans, reducing the heat to a simmer. Season the stock with salt, pepper and hot sauce (to your liking) at this time. Cook covered for one hour, stirring occasionally.
  7. Stir in the frozen corn, frozen peas, and red bell pepper. If you want to add frozen meatballs or chopped cook beef, etc., do it now. Simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes. If you do add meat, you may want to add some more water or stock so the soup doesn't get too thick.
  8. Stir in the uncooked macaroni and cook until tender, 7-12 minutes, depending on what kind of macaroni it is (use package directions for cooking time).
  9. Adjust your seasonings one last time. Add water if you want the soup more brothy.
  10. Serve with a sprinkling of grated parmesan cheese on top, if desired.
 
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