It's a Vegetable Beef/cornbread kinda night

This is my grandmother's yummy, and I mean yuuuummmmmmie vegetable beef soup recipe. Key is to let it simmer for about 2 1/2 hours.

Here we go!

Start with one very tarnished copper soup pot

Brown about 1 1/2 lbs of stew meat with some garlic and sea salt

oh, add a little EVOO

Ingredients:

1) 2 large cans of diced tomatoes

2) 1 package of Bear's Creek Vegetable beef soup mix

3) 1 can of tomato sauce

4) 4 small cans of white shoepeg corn (optional)

5) 1 handful of rice

6) 1 handful of elbow macaroni

7) Sea salt and pepper

oh, and the stew meat (but that's been covered)

After the stew meat browns, dump in all ingredients EXCEPT the macaroni and rice. Add about a can full of water

Key ingredient....NOW THIS IS A MUST ACCORDING TO MY GRANDMOTHER.

A round soup bone. Not a square one, not one of those random looking weird shaped ones, but a ROUND one. Just ask the butcher. The key is the marrow that comes out of the inside. ewe?

Almost done! after simmering for 2 1/2 hrs. About 1 hour before serving add 1 handful of rice and one handful of macaroni (don't let it burn!)

Now to the dessert:

My friend Cindy Sturdivant's corn bread...OMG just kill me right here, it is THAT good.....she told me she would have to kill me if I give out her secret ingredient, but I'll take my chances.

Ingredients:

White Lily Cornmeal mix

Follow directions....

The key is to add 1/2 stick of butter to a VERY hot iron skillet..

oh, notice this butter....I'm a big fan of Plugra butter,,,,oh my, be still my hungry, salivating heart.

Mix it all up in a red bowl...well, I guess it could be green, or white, I'm just a red girl. (cause they match the bottom of my favorite shoes.

Get that iron skillet really, really hot in a 425 oven

Lookin good yet? just wait!

There's that Plugra butter (found at Publix)

Hungry yet? (and it's not even 7 a.m) we had this last night

Enjoy Chickies...Sissy (my grandmother would be SO proud!)