Vegetable Soup

Vegetable Soup 

1/4 Cup Grape Seed Oil
1 Small Onion, diced fine
4 Cloves Garlic, crushed or minced
2 Cups Carrots, diced 
3 Cups Green Beans, diced
2 Cups Celery, diced
1/2 Cup Red Bell Pepper, diced
1/2 Cup Green Bell Pepper, diced
3 Cups Cauliflower Flowerets, chopped

2 tsp Hungarian Paprika
1/3 cup Wondra Flour

16 Cups Water
3 TBSP Knorr Chicken Bouillon
1 TSP Salt


2 Cups Peas, fresh
3 Medium Red Potatoes (with or w/o skin), diced

1/2 Bunch Italian Parsley, stemmed and minced
4-5 Cups Broccoli Florets, chopped
3 Cups Zucchini, chopped

1. On medium to high heat, sauté onions and garlic  for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring until onions begin to turn translucent.
2. Add carrots, celery, green beans, cauliflower, and red and green peppers and another 3 to 5 minutes until vegetables begin to sweat. Adjust heat to sauté but not burn veggies. 
3. Add 2 teaspoons Hungarian Paprika and continue to sauté and stir for approximately 30 seconds being careful not to burn paprika. (burned paprika will turn extremely bitter and spoil your soup)
4. Add 1/3 cup Wondra Flour and continue stirring for another 30 seconds to create a rue type coating on vegetables.
5. Add 1/2 water (about 7 cups), stirring and scraping bottom and sides of pot, incorporating to dissolve rue type coating on vegetables and pot into the broth. Keep stirring until you see that the liquid is smooth without any clumps of flour/rue visible.
6. Add peas, diced potatoes and the remaining water (another 7 cups), 3 chicken flavored Knorr cubes, 2 teaspoons salt and bring soup back to a boil, stirring occasionally.
7. Once boiling point is reached, reduce heat and simmer for approximately 10 minutes. 
8. Add broccoli, zucchini and minced parsley simmer another 10 or so minutes until vegetables reach preferred doneness. 
9. Taste and adjust flavor if needed. If soup lacks salt, add a little at a time, tasting as you go. If it is saltier than you like, add a bit of water to get to preferred flavor, cutting down or increasing seasoning quantities according to your preference. 
10. I do not like over cooked vegetables and this can turn to mush if you keep it hot too long or cover it and leave it.
11. As soon as vegetables are cooked but still firm, I ladle soup into mason jars: 2 cup, 3 cup and 4 cup portions, cap, and immerse, filled, capped jars, into a sink full of cold water before storing them in refrigerator. 
12. The mason jar maker, Ball, sells plastic lids and dissolvable labels that I use to label and date soups for storage.
13. I always heat soup in a pan on the stove rather than microwaving it. It is actually faster while also preserving nutrients in the vegetables. 
14. ENJOY!!!

Grace and Peace...