Soup Sunday: Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup with Meatballs & Parmesan Rinds

Vegetable Beef soup is one of my absolute favorite soups that my mom made us when I was growing up. I'm kind of a veggie junkie, so I love that fact that this soup has so many different components to it, which makes you feel like you're eating a huge meal. I decided to add ground beed and mini meatballs to make it extra-hearty. But the very best part of this soup, are the cubes of parmesan rind that are cooked until slightly soft & chewy. We always had this in our recipe, and people always think we are crazy for eating it, but it really is delicious! My family and I would fight over these little nuggets, no lie. So, so just give it a try, it gives it a nice salty flavor. Enjoy :)

Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup with Meatballs & Parmesan Rinds

Yummy Vegetables & Meatballs :)

For the Soup:

Olive Oil

1C Onion, Chopped

½C Celery, Chopped

½C Green Bell Pepper, Chopped

1 ½lbs Ground Beef

1T Garlic, Minced

1 14.5oz Can of Beef Stock

1 14.5oz Can of Vegetable Stock

1Q Water

1-2T Chicken Base

28oz Can of Diced or Crushed Tomatoes

1lb Frozen Peas & Carrots

2C Corn, Okra, Roasted Mushrooms, & Chopped Haricot Verts

1-2C Parmesan Rinds, Cut into Small Cubes

16oz Mini Pasta, Cooked

15-20 Mini Meatballs, Cooked

Salt & Pepper, To Taste

Hot Sauce & Worcestershire Sauce, To Taste

Fresh Parsley, Chopped

Directions: 

1. In a large pot, heat some olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery, and pepper and sauté until tender, about 2 minutes. Add the ground beef and brown the meat until cooked through. Add in the garlic and cook another minute. Stir in the beef stock, vegetable stock, water, chicken base, and crushed tomatoes. Bring to a boil over high heat, and reduce the heat, so that the liquid simmers. Add in the peas & carrots, corn okra, mushrooms, haricot verts, and Parmesan rinds. Simmer for 30-45 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked, but still have some bite, and the Parmesan rinds are slightly soft and chewy. Lastly, stir in the cooked mini pasta and meatballs. Cook on medium heat for another 10-15 minutes. Just before serving season with salt, pepper, hot sauce, Worcestershire, and parsley to taste.

Crispy Kimchi Fried Rice

Football season is finally here :) It's the best time of the year (yes, over holiday season in this family). We loveeeee the fall because it is time for some yummy tailgate food while we are rooting for the Dawgs, Bama, & the Falcons!! Sic 'Em, ROLL TIDE, & Dirrty Dirrty Birds Y'all :) We're just so excited, even though the Falcons lost last week, but it's just preseason. Alabama & UGA football doesn't start until the beginning of September, so we have plenty of time to get ready for my tailgate menu planning :) OMG, I can't wait... tailgate food is my absolute favorite, and it is actually what really started to get me cooking! Here are some pictures of us at the games...

So, the recipes I'm going to share with you today are going to be the first of many tailgate recipes this year. I mean just prepare yourself. This first recipe is Crispy Kimchi Fried Rice, which I understand isn't the typical tailgate food, but we made asian chicken wings and I need some kind of carb to go with them. We saw some kimchi at the grocery store and I remembered a recipe I had been wanted to give a try. The fried rice was delicious and perfect with our wings. I'll be posting the chicken wing recipe next! Enjoy :)

Crispy Kimchi Fried Rice

For the Rice:

1t Sesame Oil

1T Olive Oil

1T Chili-Garlic Sriracha

3 Slices of Thick Cut Bacon, Cut into Small Pieces & Fried until Crispy

2 Cloves of Garlic, Minced

3 Green Onions, Sliced

2T Soy Sauce

¾C Kimchi, Chopped

3C Leftover White Rice

½C Frozen Peas

2 Large Eggs, Fried & Scrambled

Directions:

1. To Make the Rice: In a medium bowl, combine the rice and chili-garlic sauce. Mix until the rice is evenly covered in the sauce, set aside. In a large fry pan or wok, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and green onions until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the rice and mix everything together well. Use a spatula to flatten the rice against the pan, and keep still for about 3 - 5 minutes to let the rice get crispy. Repeat until the rice is evenly crispy. Next, add the soy sauce and sesame oil, adding more to taste, stir well. Mix in the crumbled bacon, chopped Kimchi, frozen peas, and scrambled eggs. Continue stir-frying until everything is well mixed and the peas have thawed.
2. Serve the Kimchi Fried Rice with your favorite Asian entrée or with the Pok Pok Wings.

source: crispy kimchi fried rice.

Asian-Style Brown Fried Rice

The first recipe for tonight is brown fried rice that we served with teriyaki chicken as a side. We've been trying to eat healthier (although it hasn't been very successful), so instead of making fried rice with white rice, I decided to use brown rice. It's a pretty good alternative when you're really craving some carbs. Enjoy!

Asian-Style Brown Fried Rice

For the Fried Rice:

2C Brown Rice, Cooked & Cold

2T Vegetable Oil

1 Egg, Scrambled

½C Frozen Peas & Carrots

¼ Sweet Onion, Chopped

2 Green Onions, Chopped

1t Garlic, Chopped

1T Low Sodium Soy Sauce

Salt & Pepper, To Taste

Directions:

1. Heat a sauté pan to medium high heat and spray with Pam. Beat an egg and scramble until cooked, and set aside. Drizzle the vegetable oil in the pan and cook the sweet onions until tender. Next add the garlic, peas, and carrots. Simmer for about 5 minutes. After this mixture has cooked, add the cold, cooked brown rice, slowly heat the rice with the soy sauce until the rice is heated and soft. At the last minute, add the chopped green onion, cooked egg, salt, and pepper.

2. Serve with the Healthy Teriyaki Chicken & sauteed broccoli.