The Legacy lives on...

My mother called me yesterday and asked if I had seen the Facebook post of my second cousin who lives in Hungary. My response, "I saw the picture, but she writes in Hungarian, kinda tough to know what she is saying". Turns out she was posting that she had made her favorite, chicken paprikash, which here in the states is Hungarian chicken and dumplings. My mother asked her if she was cooking it the way her grandmother and aunt made it, and she said "it was the first thing my grandmother ever taught me to cook" I can relate.

A little over two years ago we lost my grandmother Ilona. She was 92 years old lived a long full life and left a legacy to us in the way we cook and eat in many ways, among so many other things. This week it was supremely cold by Florida standards, and I could not decide what to make for dinner. I had a Chuck steak in the freezer, and a bunch of fresh and frozen veggies. So, I decided to make a veggie beef soup. It's quite easy and so hearty. Most of the time I just add barley to give it a little more body, but instead I asked my girls if they wanted it like bubbie made it, with little dumplings. Consensus YES!!! Now my kids love love love chicken paprikash and the dumplings are made the same way but, Samantha only likes the dumplings in the soup not by way of the chicken and dumplings. I defrosted the meat and away we went. It was a big warm up on such a cold evening and made a perfect lunch the following day.

I promise one day to provide the family recipe for chicken paprikash but for now here is the veggie soup. Serve it with some great bread and a salad on the side if you like.

Vegetable Beef Soup

1 Onion                                    2 Zucchini Chopped
3 Carrots Chopped                 7 Mushrooms
3 Stalks of Celery Chopped   1/4 pack frozen Spinach
3/4 lb Chuck Steak                  3 TBL  Tomato Paste
Fresh Basil                               6 cups Water
2 Garlic Cloves Chopped        3 TBL Beef Stock Bouillon
Salt and Pepper                       1/4 cup barley (optional)

Chop onion, carrots, and celery and saute in olive oil. Salt and pepper and cook until soft. Add meat cut into dice sized pieces and saute until brown. Add zucchini, mushrooms, basil, and garlic and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Add water, bouillon and tomato paste. Bring to a boil. Add barley. Turn heat down, and add spinach. Season again to taste. Simmer for an hour. Enjoy.

I am sure that everyone has a legacy like our in our family, and I can say for certain that my grandmother was the matriarch of "GOOD FOOD IN GOOD TIME"

                                           Alex and my grandmother Ilona 2006