Hamburger Soup

I rarely follow a recipe. Early in our marriage, Terry was disappointed to discover that I hadn't followed the instructions on the package - and a fondly-anticipated lemon meringue pie (his favorite) was lumpy! Later on, my kids discovered (at times with embarrassment) that our Kraft Macaroni and Cheese tasted different (probably because I used half the margarine called for)!!

I always admired Aliza, my Israeli neighbor - who told me she had learned to cook by reading a few cookbooks, to get the general idea of what to do. Then she never opened a cookbook again!

I use cookbooks - but I usually compare several recipes - to assess which call for ingredients I have on hand. The end result vaguely resembles them all. (Which is why I love the internet! So many recipes to peruse!)

Here is a Hamburger Soup recipe I made up after skimming half a dozen recipes on the internet. I found it tasty, so here is my recipe... (Of course, you can change any part of it yourself!)














Hamburger Soup

1. Brown approximately half a pound / 250 grams of ground beef.
2. Add a small onion, chopped. Continue to brown.
3. Add half a green or red pepper, chopped. Continue to brown.
4. Peel one large carrot - cut it into smallish pieces - and add to the browning mixture.
5. Add one large tomato. If it is fresh, cut it into pieces. If it is frozen, just throw the whole thing in. (I freeze whole tomatoes in the summer which I later use for cooking.)
6. Add 4 cups of water or veggie broth (water drained from boiled vegetables.)
7. Add a teaspoon of chopped garlic (I buy garlic pre-chopped - in jars.)
8. Sprinkle bouillon powder (1 package or cube) over the soup and mix in.
9. Drain one can of chick peas or beans and add the drained peas / beans to the soup.
10. Sprinkle other spices on top to taste: pepper, paprika, etc. (I rarely add salt when cooking - it can be added later to taste.)
11. Let the soup simmer for an hour or so.

ENJOY!