Basic Vegetable Soup

For the last few weeks I have been really looking forward to this weekend, because it's a long weekend (Happy President's Day!). I joked around with one of my co-workers on Friday that I'd probably be sick since I sometimes manage to get sick when I am able to wind down from the stresses of work. I think that I cursed myself, because I started my day at 5:45 on Saturday morning (when I was supposed to be fully in the middle of sleeping, thank you very much) with the most miserable and disgusting bout of stomach flu I've had in a while. I'll spare you the gory details, but let's just say it wasn't pretty.

And to be honest I have not been this sick in years. Husband and I kept trying to figure out how on earth I managed to get it. Did he somehow give it to me? Was it from the salad bar at work? Did I get it from that girl that I shook hands with on Friday? Alas, no matter where I got it my weekend plans were busted, and I spent the majority of it eating applesauce and these:

I did start feeling much better on Sunday, and towards the end of the day I started craving vegetable soup. I decided that if all else failed I would make vegetable soup for my return to normalcy (or thereabouts) on President's Day.

Basic Vegetable Soup

• 2 lbs. potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2-3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2-3 parsnips, peeled and chopped
• 3-4 celery stalks, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 1lb. can of chopped or crushed tomatoes
• salt and seasonings to taste

While you are preparing your vegetables to cook, bring a large pot of water to boil (between 1 and 2 quarts). When your potatoes have been peeled and chopped put them into the pot of water (it doesn't matter if it is boiling yet or not).

As your other vegetables are ready add them to the water. The water should be barely covering your vegetables.

Add the can of chopped or crushed tomatoes directly to the pot, and stir. Tip: You may want to pour the tomatoes into another container first to ensure that they are good. Sometimes the can they came from may be damaged internally (check for "rust" or bad smell), so it's better to dirty another dish than to wind up sick (again!).

Depending on how firm you like some of your vegetables to be when your soup is done you may want to hold some of them towards the end so they don't cook as long (the onions, for example).

Let the soup boil for a few minutes and then serve.

A quick word about the salt and seasonings - I usually do not add very much salt or seasonings to this soup. Some of these vegetables already carry a lot of natural sodium, so it just isn't necessary. Additionally, if you use canned tomatoes from the store then it will often have sufficient salt and seasonings.

Another thing to consider is that this type of soup can really be made with any vegetables you have on hand and still turn out a winner. It might have done really well with some beans or some kale or spinach.

This soup was really good. I used a can of tomatoes that had some spice added to it which added a nice kick. It was a good soup to eat after basically fasting for the last couple of days. It's a great and hearty soup to eat any time, though, and not just when you're recovering.