Soups are a fantastic way to use up stray veggies in your fridge. This one was created when I had an overflow of veggies, and it turned out very delicious! Pesto can be very handy to infuse some fresh herb flavor in a soup in the dead of winter when your herb garden is not up to snuff.
Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef
3 stalks of celery, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1/2 sweet red pepper, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
one (19 oz) can of tomatoes (plus if you have any stray tomatoes in your fridge just chop them up and throw them in)
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp marjoram
pinch hot pepper flakes
1 Tbsp fresh thyme
bay leaf
1-2 Tbsp pesto
salt and pepper to taste
6 cups beef stock
1/2 cup brown rice
In a deep stock pot, saute the onion, celery, garlic, and red pepper until soft. Add the hamburger and continue to saute, stirring and breaking up with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink. Add the tomatoes, thyme, marjoram, hot pepper flakes, broth, rice, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to low and simmer for about 25-30 minutes, then toss in your carrots, pesto, and salt and pepper to taste. Let it simmer a bit longer until the carrots are tender crisp and the rice is cooked through.
We served it in bowls with fresh thyme leaves sprinkled on top and a bit of blue cheese crumbled into it.
Makes 6 servings
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