Recipe of the Week: Beef and Green Bean Tomato Soup
It was a bright, clear afternoon. My mission for the day: find a grocery store near Queens College and buy groceries! I have actually never gone food shopping near the school – mostly because I didn’t know any grocery stores existed.
And that’s when I discovered Four Seasons on the Main Street behind Queens College. Ah how glorious it felt knowing that I would never have to lug tons of Trader Joe’s bags up the hill to the Summit again!
I walked through the store aisles in a daze. Not even the fact that all the food was more expensive could ruin my mood. The discovery was revolutionary and would change the way I went food shopping!
And I’m too embarrassed to step foot in there again.
So excited was I, to have finally discovered a place nearby where I could do my food shopping, I forgot to make sure I had the funds to pay for the overpriced goods.
I waited on the checkout line with pride, and carefully placed all my items on the checkout table.
And that’s when I decided that it might be a good time to get the money out. But alas, I had no cash on me. I pulled out my wallet, slightly embarrassed for not coming prepared. But it was ok, because that’s what debit cards are for, right?
I quite literally emptied the contents of my purse onto the checkout table and frantically searched for my debit card in vain. It wasn’t in my purse.
The cashier, having noticed my despair, told me to leave the store and come back prepared to pay. What a pleasant farewell.
I ran back to my dorm and ransacked my room, looking for the debit card, but no luck.
The debit card had vanished.
No worries, I called the bank and they sent me a new debit card within a few days. The mind-boggling part of this story is that: I never discovered the location of my old debit card. Furthermore: my debit card wasn’t used. At all. So it couldn’t have been stolen. I suppose this will just be one of life’s little mysteries.
I did eventually get the courage to go back to the supermarket, and got the ingredients to make one of my favorite soups: green bean and beef tomato soup.
Ingredients:
1 packet of raw beef, titled “beef stew” (it comes pre-cubed and is easier to use).
1 packet of frozen green beans, or, about a pound of fresh green beans
1 container of tomato soup
About half a gallon of water (eyeball it)
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
½ tablespoon of pepper paste
A sprinkle of paprika
Salt
Pepper
Step One: I bought fresh green beans which require a little more work. If you want to try this recipe with fresh green beans, first you must wash them, and then cut the ends. Place green beans in a separate bowl.
Step Two: Defrost the beef by placing the whole packet (unopened) in a bowl of warm water and cover it. It should defrost in about an hour. If you know you're going to do this dish in advance, I suggest placing the beef in the refrigerator beforehand for a few hours. Sauté the beef on a frying pan with a vegetable oil ( I use grape-seed oil). Sauté until the beef turns to a dull brown.
Step Three: Pour tomato soup container and water in a pot. Add in green beans and beef.
Step Four: Add in salt, pepper, tomato paste, pepper paste, and paprika. Cook the soup until green beans are soft and no longer crunchy. This may take up to an hour if you're using fresh green beans. If you're using a frozen packet of green beans, I suggest cutting into a piece of beef after the soup begins to boil to make sure it is thoroughly cooked. Once it is finished cooking, serve and eat!
Debit card issues aside: this soup is an all time favorite, and will definitely warm you up on a cold day. If there is any dish you would like to know how to make, post it in the comments and maybe one day I’ll post a recipe! Have a good week!
