Ground Beef Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground beef
4 carrots, diced
4 celery ribs, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5 ounce) can whole tomatoes, crushed
1 (15 ounce) can peas, undrained
1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can green beans, drained and rinsed
ground black pepper to taste
1/8 teaspoon ground thyme
1 bay leaf, or more to taste
1/4 cup water, as needed



Instructions:

Crumble ground beef into a stockpot over medium-high heat; cook and stir until beef is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink, 7 to 10 minutes. Drain and discard any excess grease.

Stir carrots, celery, and onion into the ground beef; cook and stir until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add potatoes, tomato sauce, crushed whole tomatoes, undrained peas, corn, and green beans to the pot; season with black pepper. Stir mixture until evenly mixed. Add thyme and bay leaf to the pot. Pour 1/4 cup water over the mixture if needed to moisten mixture, replenishing as needed while cooking.

Bring soup to a simmer, place a cover on the pot, and cook, stirring regularly, until potatoes are tender, about 1 hour.