Hearty Beef Soup

Photo: flickr user crd!

Ingredients

Leftover broth & bones from the classic crockpot roast (leave a little of the meat

2 -(up to)

3 Carrots, peeled & sliced fairly thin

1 medium Onion, diced

1 -(up to)

2 Potatoes, diced

3 -(up to)

5 Cloves, whole

3 -(up to)

4 Peppercorns, whole

2 Bay leaves

2 cups Beans of choice (soaked first overnight)

1 can (28-oz) stewed tomatoes, or italian

3 tablespoons Dried oregano

3 tablespoons Dried basil

1/2 cup Uncooked buckwheat, optional and/or

1 cup Mini-shell pasta, optional

Preparation

Put all but the shell pasta (optional) in the crockpot. Fill it to the very top of the rim with water (doesn't have to be hot). Turn it on high for one hour to cook the vegetables until they are tender. Then turn the crockpot down to low, and cook until soup is flavored as you like. Season with salt & pepper to taste. If you like a spicy version, use cayenne instead of regular pepper.

If you are using mini pastas, add them for the last half hour of stewing.

Remove the bay leaf, peppercorns, bones, and cloves (or warn the folks eating the soup!).

You can also adapt this recipe as desired to make soup from a leftover chicken or turkey carcass. Just dump it all in and add water to fill to the top. Try also, different spices (cumin, cilantro, etc...)

/MISC