NOT SOCK SOUP .....

 

"Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth. It is the time for home..."  -Edith Sitwell
Every winter my mother would make vats of soup. She made what she called Sock Soup. A bit of this and that, with leftover bacon grease, or sausages, and cabbage...

  

Sometimes it smelled like she'd  actually boiled socks  in the pot.  .......soup has come a long way since then.

THIS is  Hamburger Soup. It doesn't taste like socks. When we lived on military bases  THIS was THE soup of choice for all gatherings, in minus 35 Celsius weather in Ontario, and the Maritimes.  Big crock pots of this lovely, chili- like soup, without the chili seasoning, served by roaring fires, to hungry hoards, with homemade crusty buns, or scones.... 

Haul out your largest crock pot. Get it heated up with  a cup of hot water....this is kind of a add-whatever-you-want soup .....you can add meat, or just have it as vegetarian. This batch was made with no-salt ingredients......

I cooked up a large pack of gr beef in oven, while adding veggies to the crock pot. Let the oven do the cooking while you get everything else ready....

CHOP: a few stalks of celery, a small group of potatoes, some onion, if you wish. Not too much onion, as it can get VERY strong ,as the mix cooks in slow cooker. 

MICROWAVE: A bag of frozen carrots, peas, corn, green or yellow beans till warmed up. 

Varied Thrush

DUMP: 1 large container of no sodium veggie broth or beef broth into crock pot.  

ADD: warmed up veggies, potatoes, celery, CAN of tomatoes,  TWO cans of (no salt) kidney beans, another carton of broth, if you wish, or top with hot water. 

ADD: pepper, parsley, basil... THEN add the cooked hamburger meat. You can also use ground turkey, or chicken. Or just add more veggies, if you prefer. Sometimes, I add squash, turnips, parsnips.......

To keep the acid of the tomatoes at bay, sprinkle in a tsp of sugar......the flavours meld well. I've tried baking soda, and it's okay, but the sugar seems to work better. 

* you can even add a touch of chili powder , to your liking. but NOT cabbage or broccoli, or it will smell, dreadfully, like socks boiling....

Let it cook on high for about 4-5 hours till you can see the soup bubbling up through the glass lid. Serve over rice, or plain with buns or scones......

I remember one instance, years ago, on a freezing January night, in Petawawa, Ontario, there was a gathering for a group of military wives.  We were each supposed to bring a main dish. I decided not to make  hamburger soup, which was the going "thing" for these things. I figured someone else would bring it.  Instead, I made a chicken curry.  WHY? I have no idea.  Fifteen wives arrived that night. Each one with a curry of some sort. No soup. Nothing but curried dishes as far as the eye could see. Curried veggies, curried chicken, curried eggs, curried scones, curried potatoe salad, curried  everything. I never made curry again.......

"Soup is a lot like family. Each ingredient enhances the others; each batch has its own characteristics, and it needs time to simmer to reach full flavour..." 

                                                                                                            - Marge Kennedy

Photographs 2025