Vegetable Beef Soup

For the first time in my life, I hosted Christmas dinner at my house this year. Er, last year? Whatever, Christmas 2013 is what I'm talking about. I chose to do roast beef. I've never made roast beef in my life, and I've heard a million times that you never make something for the first time for a crowd. I knew that advice was based on sound experience. I chose to ignore it, thus ensuring it would be a chaotic and perhaps, unsavory day.

Don't ask me what I was thinking, just try to remember that I am still learning about cooking. I thought my 6-lb roast was going to take 6 hours, so I got up extra early to prep my roast and make sure it was in the oven by 6 am (dinner was being served at 1). Sure enough, my roast was the perfect temperature in 4 hours. My roast, needless to say, had a lengthy nap prior to dinner. Luckily, the meat was perfectly pink and still warm when the hubby carved it up.

It turns out a 6-lb roast will feed 5 adults and 3 kids, all while leaving the cook with substantial leftovers. Whether or not the extensive appetizer noshing pre-dinner had anything to do with the amount of leftovers remains to be seen. The point is, I had a lot of leftover roast beef and not the foggiest idea what to do with it. Thank goodness for Pinterest. One of the first ideas I had was Vegetable Beef Soup. We are soup lovers here, so this idea was a keeper! This recipe is pretty versatile, you could pretty much use whatever vegetable you wanted and/or had on hand. I also happen to be a veggie lover, so I like to pack my soup with my cruciferous friends. Serve on a cold day (no problem here in NE Kentucky!) with lots of crusty French bread.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 cup dry red wine (I used Yellowtail Cabernet)
8 cups low-sodium beef broth
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz) green beans
1 small potato, peeled and diced
1/2 tbsp dried basil
1/2 tbsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
2 cups cooked roast beef, diced

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. When heated, add onion, celery, and carrot. Saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
2. Add red wine to the pot. Bring liquid to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer. Simmer until the wine has been reduced by half, or a little more.
3. Add the beef broth through the ground red pepper to the pot. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes, or until the potatoes are done.
4. Add cooked roast beef to the pot. Continue to simmer for another 5 minutes, or until the beef has been warmed. Salt to taste. Remove from heat, and serve immediately.