Hearty Vegetable Soup

Last Sunday morning I looked up into the sky and felt the first flakes of snow falling gently on my face. And then I watched in amazement as the snow continued to descend steadily the rest of the day. By 5:00 p.m. there was an accumulation of at least six inches on my driveway as we inched our way down the street to a Covid-compliant family wedding, our first nuptial celebration in nine months. As we passed piles of snow on either side of the road, I wondered how that evening’s events would unfold.

Hearty Vegetable Soup

In the planning for months, the wedding playbook was torn up at the last minute because new Covid 19 restrictions were being implemented at midnight. The drive-by reception to congratulate the new couple was restricted to the select few lucky enough to commandeer a dog-sled. However these superficial setbacks did not seem to even register on the radar of the glowing new couple. The bride, a luminous vision in a cloud of tulle and lace, and the handsome groom, gazed at each other with warmth and affection that could have melted the snow for miles around. My husband Stephen and I wished the new couple congratulations at the end of the ceremony and plodded back to our car, looking forward to a bowl of this hearty vegetable soup, bubbling lazily on the stove at home. This recipe by Rivky Kleiman has been a favorite in our family since it was first published in Mishpacha Magazine, October 23, 2013.

Assemble your ingredients. Chop the onion, mince the garlic, dice the celery finely and slice the leek thinly. Set aside. Dice the carrots, zucchini, sweet potato and potatoes. Wash the parsley and dill well and tie them up in a garnis bag. Trim the flanken and slice into 2 inch pieces. Add the oil to a large stock pot and heat on a medium flame. Add the onion, garlic and leek to the pot. Sauté until translucent., about 8 minutes. Place the flanken slices over the onion, garlic and leek. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and allow the flanken to brown for about 7 minutes. Turn over the flanken pieces and brown on the other side.  

Add the diced vegetables to the pot and sauté for about 2 minutes, stirring the whole time. Add the water, consomme powder, beans, barley, garnis bag with fresh herbs, salt, pepper, sherry if using and garlic and onion powder. Bring to a rolling boil and simmer for 2 1/2 hours, stirring from time to time.

Print Recipe

Hearty Vegetable Soup

Soups and Salads

By Rivky Kleiman, Mishpacha Magazine – Serves: 8-10

Prep Time: 20 minutes – Cooking Time: 3 hours – Total Time: 3 hours, 20 minutes

Chunks of carrots, zucchini and potatoes in a meaty broth with beef, barley and baby lima beans.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 leek, sliced thinly, white part only
• 4 cloves garlic, minced or grated
• 2 6-inch (15-centimeter) pieces beef flanken, fat trimmed and sliced into 2 inch pieces
• 3 small zucchini, diced (it's not necessary to peel the zucchini)
• 4 carrots, peeled and cubed
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 3 stalks celery, diced into small pieces
• 12 cups water
• 1/4 cup baby lima beans
• 1/4 cup barley
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley and 1/4 cup fresh dill, tied in a garni bag
• 1/4 cup sherry, if desired (optional)
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 tablespoons chicken consomme powder
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Instructions

1

Assemble your ingredients. Chop the onion, mince the garlic, dice the celery finely and slice the leek thinly. Set aside. Chop the carrots, zucchini, sweet potato and potatoes into small cubes. Wash the parsley and dill well and tie them up in a bouquet garni bag.

2

Trim the flanken and slice into 2 inch pieces. Add the oil to a large stock pot and heat over a medium flame. Add the onion, garlic and leek to the pot. Lower the heat and sauté until translucent, about 8 minutes. Place the flanken slices over the onion, garlic and leek. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and allow the flanken to brown for about 7 minutes. Turn over the flanken pieces and brown on the other side. 

3

Add the cubed vegetables to the pot and sauté for about 2 minutes, stirring the whole time. Add the water, consomme powder, beans, barley, garni bag with fresh herbs, salt, pepper, sherry if using and garlic and onion powder.

4

Raise the heat under the pot. Bring to a rolling boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 2 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Notes

This soup freezes beautifully.