Grandma's hamburger soup

 

Gram actually calls this the poor man's soup lol but that doesn't sound very nice. But it really is very simple delishious soup and most homes have the main ingredients on hand already so there is no need to go out and buy an ingredient that you are missing. Plus the ingredients are all very cheap at the market so its affordable, tasty, inventive and a one pot meal.

You need 1 can (or your own canned which is what I used) diced tomatoes

1 onion chopped

1 lb 80/20 ground beef (Of course you can make this healthier and use ground chicken or turkey)

If you STILL have left over turkey and chicken, like we do, you could pulse it in a food processor to get it ground up.

Pasta (as much as you want and any kind works but I love to use bucatini pasta, it's a straight tube) snapped into small pieces

3 cups boiling water in a tea pot

seasoning

This is the main part and all you really need but I like mine really tasty in the winter

I added 3 beef bouillon cubes

2 dried bay leaves 

3 cloves crushed garlic

A big handful of bacon bits ( OK, so I am craving bacon bits this week, don't ask. You'll see the recurring theme in this weeks recipes until I run out, which isn't too far from happening lol)

Partially cook the beef in a pot on low heat (no oil there is fat in the beef its 80/20 fat content. If you used chick or turkey then add a tbsp of oil to pot), then add onion, salt, pepper, garlic, bacon bits and bay leaves. Give it a quick swirl then let it cook for 5 more minutes on low stirring occasionally.

Pour on the diced tomatoes with their juice.

Whats this you say? Raw onions still? No worries!

Pour on the boiling water and add the snapped up pasta to the pot.

We tried to get a shot of the pasta so you could see the holes.

Let this simmer away for 15 minutes and serve.

Jon was my Kitchen Helper today, the cats were NOT team players last night and decided to hang out together on the heated blanket on the bed lol.

Its not sweat, its a terrible attempt on my part to dye his white wife-beaters black to match his t-shirts better. :x I suck at dying fabric. I did it to mine also but I dyed them pink, yellow, orange and blue and they look Tye-dyed lol.