Gluten Free Living – 2015

Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup is a delightful soup recipe any time of the year–not just in the fall or winter. I have to admit I’ve grown to really enjoy soups over the past several years. Soups made with vegetable broth, chowders made with a creamy base, soups with southwestern flavor or Tex-Mex style–I like any and all combinations.

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Soups, soups, soups! While I make more soups in the fall and winter months, I don’t mind making them all year round. (Even though we have very hot Texas summers here!) Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup is one of my wonderful soup recipes. It’s healthy, low calorie, gluten free and cooks in the slow cooker making it so convenient for family dinners.

I didn’t grow up eating soups, even though my mom did. She said Grandma made a soup that was served before every “supper” and dinner meal back when she was growing up. Because Mom’s family lived on a farm, all of them required a lot of sustenance for their slew of daily chores.

That was back before WWII when things became more automated. (She had to wash clothes by hand over a wash board–yikes!) Anyway, we never ate soup growing up–probably because my dad was a meat and potatoes man. So it took several decades later before I really started making soups on my own. It’s not that I wouldn’t eat them when we went out to eat, I just never made them at home until about five to seven years ago. I’m so glad I kicked the habit and started making soups on my own. 🙂

If you’re looking for a delicious soup that you can make in your slow cooker, this Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup is an excellent choice. It has such a savory, delicately seasoned broth and it’s as tasty as can be. I’ve loaded it with veggies like potatoes, green beans, yellow and zucchini squash, carrots, tomatoes, broccoli and mushrooms. I’ve seasoned it with rosemary and thyme, which along with the salted and peppered beef broth makes for a very simple, yet tasty soup. Plus, the nice thing about this recipe is you can use whatever garden produce you have on hand and you want to add. Win-win-win. 🙂

Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup is wonderful comfort food.

If you’re trying to eat healthy, Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup is a wonderful option.

This soup is healthy, low calorie and gluten free.

Here’s what I did.

I used these ingredients for the soup, plus 7-8 pounds of beef bones.

Place Beef bones in a crockpot. Fill with water and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Cook bones on low over night (8-10 hours) or for about 4 hours on high. The beef bones yield only a very small amount of meat but a delicious broth. If you want more meat, add some stew beef or leftover pot roast.

Take meat off bones and cut into chunks. Discard bones, fat and gristle–or you can add more water and recook the bones for additional broth. Place meat back into the crockpot with homemade beef broth.

Dice onions, celery, slice carrots and peel and cube potatoes. Add to crockpot.

Quarter zucchini and yellow squash, dice red bell pepper, cut broccoli florets from stalk, and cut off tips and ends of green beans, then halve. Add veggies to crockpot.

Add chopped mushrooms, fire-roasted diced tomatoes (undrained), parsley, salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary.

Cover with lid and cook on low for 4-6 hours or until veggies are tender.

Serve Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup with your favorite homemade bread or biscuits.

I loved all the veggies in this soup.

Here’s the recipe.

SLOW COOKER BEEF AND VEGETABLE SOUP

(My own concoction)

Garnish your soup with fresh thyme or rosemary.

This hearty soup is so satisfying, you’ll enjoy every drop!

You may also enjoy these delicious recipes!

Beef and Barley Soup

Cabbage Roll Soup

Crockpot Brisket Stew