Recipe #132: Hearty Hamburger Soup

This is a recipe my grandma passed along that she has made for 55+ years! My mom has made it for ages too, and after a quick phone call to Japan to check about a substitution and we were good to go! :) We are all feeling a little under the weather and soup was just the thing! I also got to pull out my pumpkin tureen in honor of the cool, fall air. It was a win all around!
I halved the recipe, but I will write down the whole thing...

You need:

3 Tbsp butter or oleo                         
1 medium onion chopped                  
1  1/2 lbs ground beef                                   
1 can (1 lb.12oz) tomatoes ( I used diced with green chilies to give it a kick)                                   

3 cans (10 1/2 oz) consomme plus 2 cans water  (for the half recipe i substituted 3 beef bouillons and  about 4 cups of water)              
10 peppercorns

1 Tbsp salt

4 medium carrots

4 celery tops (I omited this)

6 sprigs parsley (or a tsp dried)

1/4 tsp thyme

I also add in 3/4 cup of barley, or you can add rice, pasta etc!

Melt butter in soup kettle--toss in chopped onions.cook until they are limb but not brown.
Add the ground beef and stir it around until it loses its red look
Pour in the rest of the ingredients.
Cover and cook over a very low heat for about 45 min.
Delicious with bread right out of the oven!

disclaimer...my camera is really old and takes terrible pictures! the soup is really delicious, although my camera can't capture it! :)