Have you ever heard of a Shoney’s Restaurant?

Shoney’s used to be in several towns/cities in Missouri. Way back when my kids were just sprouts, me and their dad would take them to Shoney’s and we would pig out on their all you could eat breakfast bar. It is embarrassing to think how many pieces of their crispy bacon I would eat at one sitting. If you timed it just right, you could eat breakfast, but they would start putting out the all you could eat salad and soup bar.

And….if you know anything about me by now, you know that I am love’n me some soup.

One of my favorite soups was their Cabbage Soup.

Now….hang on there….there is more to this soup than cabbage.

Let’s just say the cabbage is the finishing touch. AND you can add as little or as much as you want.

BUT, don’t be afraid to add some.

When I came back from Savannah GA on vacation. I was ready for just some soup. (Even though I went to the Pirate House three times just to eat their Crab Bisque, corn muffins and orange marmalade). I had eaten at a Irish Pub, a local BBQ, At Robert Irvine’s restaurant Nosh and a couple of more restaurants on River Street.

I just needed some homemade soup.

So….I made a big batch of Shoney’s Cabbage Soup, took it to Mom’s after church for lunch. Niener Wiener and her hubby, Jeanie Beanie, Company, The Princess and Prince (Mom and Dad) and me. We slurped on this soup and smacked out lips and Nieners hubby Gary ate a few bowls. There was just enough soup to send home Jeanie Beanie and Nierner a container for dinner.

Anywho, it is officially fall. You can eat soup everyday (like me) or make a batch, have it for dinner, then freeze the rest in containers to take to work for lunch (like me also).

Here is what you need to make this recipe.

Yes…CABBAGE…some celery, red pepper (you could use green) diced tomatoes, hamburger, tomato paste, beef soup base, Worcestershire  sauce, kidney beans, sugar, onion, garlic powder, pepper and salt.

    

First brown  you hamburger and drain well. (sometimes I rinse mine with water after I fry it to get all the grease off).

         

Chop up the celery in bite size pieces.                                              Chop up the red pepper into bite size pieces.

         

Now, saving the best for last, chop up the onion. Add all the chopped vegetables to the brown and drained hamburger meat.

         

Add in the dice tomatoes and season with a little bit of pepper (to taste).

         

Add some salt (I used sea salt) and some garlic powder. You could probably sneak in a diced garlic clove if you wanted to. Also, you are using a beef soup base which can be salty, so you may want to wait to salt the soup after all the ingredients are in and you taste it first.

         

Add the Worcestershire Sauce and the tomato paste.

         

Add the sugar and the beef soup base. The beef soup base can be salty so be careful how much salt you use.

         

Add in the water and bring the soup to a simmer.

         

Add in the shredded cabbage. (I used already shredded cole slaw cabbage)

Simmer until the cabbage is tender.

There you go…Shoney’s Cabbage Soup.

MMMM….I wish I could eat some now….OH I CAN….I have some in the freezer.

See, there is the cabbage soup right next to the Roasted Cauliflower Soup  in the freezer.

Here is the recipe:

Shoney’s Cabbage Soup

Adapted from church cookbook I bought at Goodwill

Ingredients:

3 pounds of ground beef, browned and drained

1 medium onion, chopped

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1 green or red sweet pepper, chopped

4 to 6 cups of water (depending on how thick you want the soup)

2 large cans diced tomatoes and juice

2 large cans kidney beans and juice

2 to 3 tablespoon beef soup base (be careful here, this can be salty…good but salty)

1 tablespoon pepper

Salt to taste (taste after adding beef soup base and then salt)

3 tablespoons sugar

4 ounces tomato paste

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

I package of pre shredded cole slaw mix ( I used about 3/4 of the bag)

Directions:

Bring all the ingredients to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes. Add the cabbage and simmer until tender.

Now, you if you live in Missouri, you don’t have to go all the way to Branson to enjoy some Shoney’s Cabbage Soup.

Enjoy!

Becky