I wish I could share the smell of simmering Stone Soup as it fills our kitchen today. Stone Soup? Here's our story and recipe:
Children develop a vegetable allergy once they leave toddlerhood. Perhaps a few escape this common ailment, but I venture it is the parents who have overcome the obstacle, not the child.
The first time I made vegetable beef soup, Matthew and Grace were interested--until they saw the vegetables. I needed to convince them this was a good thing--and the teacher files in my head started to click. Ahh...yes! Stone Soup! In the children's folktale, a poor beggar slyly begs a hearty meal by promising to make soup from a stone. Ingredients are added, one by one, to season the stone until ta-da! Dinner is served.
So, in the age old tradition, I sent Matthew out to find a stone for supper. He came in with a pebble. "Too small. We don't want to eat it; we just need it to make our soup tasty. Get a BIG one." He went back outside and returned with a potato-sized, oddly-shaped gray rock. We pulled the stool over to the sink so he could wash it, then moved the stool to the stove where he carefully dropped it in the pot. To this day we enjoy stone soup. Here's one of our all-time favorite recipes (original recipe by Helen McGill).
HEARTY BEEF VEGETABLE SOUP
1 lb. beef stew meat
1 c. chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. oregano leaves
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. sage
1 (1 lb.) can crushed tomatoes
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. cubed potatoes
1 c. sliced carrots
1 c. coarsely chopped cabbage
1 can condensed beef broth
2 beef bouillon cubes
4 c. water
1 large stone
1/3 c. uncooked rice or barley
Brown stew meat, onions, and garlic in a 6-quart dutch oven (or cook on low in a crockpot 2-3 hours). Add remaining ingredients except the rice/barley. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20 minutes (or cook an additional 3 hours in crockpot). Add rice or barley. Cook an additional 30 minutes (or hour in crockpot). Remove the stone before serving. Choose an accompaniment: blueberry scones, biscuits, or pumpkin muffins. Enjoy!
Children develop a vegetable allergy once they leave toddlerhood. Perhaps a few escape this common ailment, but I venture it is the parents who have overcome the obstacle, not the child.
The first time I made vegetable beef soup, Matthew and Grace were interested--until they saw the vegetables. I needed to convince them this was a good thing--and the teacher files in my head started to click. Ahh...yes! Stone Soup! In the children's folktale, a poor beggar slyly begs a hearty meal by promising to make soup from a stone. Ingredients are added, one by one, to season the stone until ta-da! Dinner is served.
So, in the age old tradition, I sent Matthew out to find a stone for supper. He came in with a pebble. "Too small. We don't want to eat it; we just need it to make our soup tasty. Get a BIG one." He went back outside and returned with a potato-sized, oddly-shaped gray rock. We pulled the stool over to the sink so he could wash it, then moved the stool to the stove where he carefully dropped it in the pot. To this day we enjoy stone soup. Here's one of our all-time favorite recipes (original recipe by Helen McGill).
HEARTY BEEF VEGETABLE SOUP
1 lb. beef stew meat
1 c. chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. oregano leaves
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. sage
1 (1 lb.) can crushed tomatoes
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. cubed potatoes
1 c. sliced carrots
1 c. coarsely chopped cabbage
1 can condensed beef broth
2 beef bouillon cubes
4 c. water
1 large stone
1/3 c. uncooked rice or barley
Brown stew meat, onions, and garlic in a 6-quart dutch oven (or cook on low in a crockpot 2-3 hours). Add remaining ingredients except the rice/barley. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20 minutes (or cook an additional 3 hours in crockpot). Add rice or barley. Cook an additional 30 minutes (or hour in crockpot). Remove the stone before serving. Choose an accompaniment: blueberry scones, biscuits, or pumpkin muffins. Enjoy!
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