DragonmamaCooks Vegetable and Beef Soup

I love making a big pot of soup that can be eaten off of for a few days and can also have a large portion frozen for future meals. My mama taught me a veggie and beef soup that I have adapted into my own version that I cook in a huge stock pot. It feeds the family for 2-3 days and I put enough into the freezer for another 2 meals. It's an easy comfort food soup that just hits the spot on those cold winter nights. It is also very adaptable to your preferences. I will show you how I like to make it. Then, I will show some adaptations, including some of the ways my mom originally showed me.

Dragonmama's Vegetable and Beef Soup

1 large package of stew beef cut small
1 bottle of V8
2 cans of tomato sauce
2 cans corn
2 cans green beans
2 cans sliced carrots
2 cans potatoes
salt
pepper
paprika
(Use half the amount if you don't want to make enough to freeze)

Fill stock pot halfway with water. Add stew beef. Bring to a boil. Turn to med low and simmer for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally, until stew beef is completely tender. I choose to not add any seasonings yet because it seems to take longer for the beef to get tender. Once beef has reached desired tenderness, do not drain. You now have a yummy beef stock that will enhance the flavor of your soup. Drain your cans of veggies. Add the bottle of V8, your veggies, and spices to taste. The paprika really does add something special to this soup. Let it all simmer on the med low for about an hour, stirring occasionally. I usually go ahead and ladle out a storage bowl of soup now so it can start cooling off for freezing. This serves well with grilled cheese sandwiches or just some crackers. Add some Tabasco sauce for a little heat. If you try this let me know how you liked it in the comments below. Also if you have any alternatives or additions, please leave me a comment so I can try it out. Enjoy!!

Alternatives and additions
Couple lbs of ground beef instead of stew beef
^sub a lb of ground turkey or chicken with the ground beef
frozen or fresh veggies instead of canned
add tomatoes, peas, limas, white beans
any variety of veggies can be used
tomato juice instead of V8 but I recommend  V8 for extra vitamins
add tabasco during cooking
bread bowls