So many soups to choose from

My camera is done. I did a little searching around at some name brand places and found a great digital camera and printer deal in my price range. It should be here shortly. And I will be able to get you some of those pictures. There are better deals then what Wal-mart is currently advertizing.

It has been getting below freezing here, as well as many other places, and I have noticed a few blogs posting about their favorite stews/soups. Burdockboy has a great looking Sausage and Kale soup, and Cheryl has a creamy vegetable soup. I am going to try out both of these recipes. I have decided to post my favorite soup recipe, that I made last night {no pics, sorry}

Beef Noodle and Dumpling Soup

you will need
2 lbs tenderized bottom round steak, cut up into bite sized pieces
vegetable oil
1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
1 celery stock, finely chopped
½ cup dry cooking sherry

heat up 2 tbl vegetable oil in a large, heavy sauce pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the vegetables and meat in patches as not to crowd them. Brown all sides, add more vegetable oil if needed, and remove from pan. In same pan, heat the sherry and reduce for 2 minutes, scraping of the brown bits. Return the beef and vegetables back to the pan, and reduce the heat to very low. Cover and allow it to sweat for 20 minutes.

Increase the heat and add 2 quarts of beef stock and a little salt. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to a very low again. Cover the pan partially and allow to simmer for 1 hour.

The Soup;

you will need;

1 tbl butter
1 medium onion, diced to your preference {We finely chop ours, the kids eat in better that way}
2 medium carrots, diced to your preference
6 button mushrooms, diced to your preference
2 cups wide egg noodles
Parsley
salt and ground black pepper.

Heat a sauce pan with butter and soften the vegetables {larger diced will take 5 minutes} Add to the stock, simmer for 15 minutes, reserve the pan with any vegetable chunks in it for later. Add noodles {using homemade noodles? cook for 10 minutes before adding dumplings} Salt and pepper to taste.

For the dumpling, use your favorite recipe, but substitute the milk with buttermilk {you will need to add more buttermilk than regular milk to get it to the correct consistency} If you don't have a recipe, I actually do suggest using bisquick with this soup. {I know, sell out} Use the pan that you had cooked the diced vegetables to mix up you dumplings. Add to the soup, and cook uncovered for ten minutes, then covered for ten. Serve and enjoy.