A few months back I showed you all how I took leftovers from a delicious French Dip Sandwich Recipe and repurposed them to make the most amazing beef soup. Y’all it was truly some of the best soup I have ever had. Ever! So, I reached out to Lisa from This Pilgrim Life about doing a little collaboration where we both share her original French Dip Sammie Recipe, and then give our own spinoffs on how to use the leftovers. Lisa is going to share the French Dip Sammie Recipe using venison, and then give you a delicious recipe for Empanadas using the leftovers. I am sharing her original Beef version for Mmmm-Mmm French Dip Sammies, followed by the soup recipe below. Really, the soup is a simple spinoff of my Simple Vegetable Soup, just with all the leftover beef and broth from the French Dip Sammies. Be sure to read the notes for how I figure out tweaking the recipe based on my leftovers. 

This post, in conjunction with the French Dip Sammie post, are meant to go hand-in-hand, giving you two amazing recipes and maximizing your leftovers. I usually make the soup either the same day I make the sammies, or the following day. That way, I can enjoy a bowl, or freeze the soup for a later date. 

Hope you enjoy!

The Most Delicious Beef and Vegetable Soup

The recipe makes a ton (approx. 4 quarts) so you can have some to freeze or give away, but by all means feel free to half it.

YOU WILL NEED:

• 1 bunch of celery (approx 6 stalks), sliced approx 1/4″ thick
• approx 8 carrots, peeled and sliced into little circles
• 1 white or yellow onion, diced
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2-3 tbs olive oil
• 3 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes (I prefer petite diced, but use what you can find)
• all the leftover juice and meat from making the French Dip Sammies
• up to 64 ounces (8 cups) vegetable, beef, or chicken stock **see note below!
• 1-2 tsp salt 

**NOTE: you are going to adjust the amount of stock you need based on the amount of leftover beef and broth you are adding. So, if you have 2 cups of beef/juice, you will take away 2 cups of broth because it is being replaced by the beef/juice. If you have 4 cups of beef/juice, take away 4 cups of broth because it is being replaced by the beef/juice. 

To drive this point home and make sure it is clear: If you add 2 cups beef/juice, you will need 6 cups of stock. If you add 4 cups of beef/juice, you will need 4 cups of stock. Also, adding the broth is not an exact science, some prefer more broth for a more liquid soup; others prefer less broth for more of a thick stew. Both are delicious!

TO MAKE:

1. Start by sautéing the diced carrot, onion, and celery in the olive oil until the onion is translucent (approx. 5 minutes)
2. Add the 3 cans of diced tomatoes, salt, frozen peas, all the beef/juice from making the french dip sammies
3. Add the amount of stock you need to have the soup at whatever consistency you prefer (add less for a thicker stew or more broth for more of a soup consistency)
4. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer
5. Allow the soup to simmer for anywhere from 20 minutes to all afternoon! But at least a solid 20 minutes.
6. Serve alongside warm bread or grilled cheese sandwiches; enjoy!