Grab 'N' Go Canned Soup... Part 1 Hamburger Vegetable Soup

While searching for a can of soup in my pantry at the last minute before running out the door, late for work with no leftovers from the night before, and finding nothing to my liking... the idea popped into my head... why don't I can up some GOOD soup, with ingredients I recognize, and meat that I know is real meat and not pressed pieces and parts that are barely recognizable as meat...

The idea progressed... I could can the soup in wide mouth pint jars... reheat at work IN THE JAR, and eat. How easy would that be? *Head Slap* Why had I not thought of this before??? So I did it...

First soup... Hamburger Vegetable...

Here's what I did...

I browned a pound of ground beef and drained it well...

I diced a couple (2-3) potatoes and added them...

...I added a couple diced carrots...

... and a chopped onion...

I like a little something green in my vegetable soup, so I added some fresh green beans I had on hand (if you add green beans, use fresh or frozen, not previously canned, the pressure canning will cook them to pieces if you use previously canned)... you could add peas in place of the green beans, or leave them out entirely if you wish, personal choice...

I added some frozen whole kernel corn (again, personal choice, corn is optional, but tasty!)

I poured a big bottle of vegetable juice cocktail over the meat and veggies (V-8)... you could use just tomato juice, but I love the flavors of the vegetable juice cocktail.

I seasoned my soup with some garlic powder (maybe a teaspoon), and salt and pepper.

Then I brought the mixture to a boil over medium high heat. (if I wasn't gonna can this, I'd then reduce the heat and let it simmer until the veggies were soft and the flavors married)... but for canning, just bring it to a boil to heat things through... the canner will soften things up.

While the soup was heating, I heated my wide mouth pint jars in boiling water and simmered my lids in boiling water and kept everything hot until I was ready for them.

I ladled the soup into the jars, leaving a good half inch headspace. I tightened the hot lids on to fingertip tightness. 

I place the jars in my pressure canner and processed them at 10 pounds of pressure for 70 minutes (quarts would take 90 minutes)... after the processing was complete, I removed the canner from the heat and let the pressure drop to ZERO before removing the lid and removing the jars using my jar lifter and setting them on a folded dish towel on the counter to cool and seal...

... That PING of each successfully sealed jar is music to my ears!

Yummy soup to Grab 'n' Go! This recipe made about 7-8 pints of delicious hamburger vegetable soup.

If you're someone who forgets to order food online through a Medifast retailer or a different diet plan similiar to Medifast, you know what it's like to not have food around the house so having several jars of soup like this could really come in handy if you're ever busy or be a life saver if you're having company!

For a printable copy of the recipe, click here.

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