After tweaking this recipe for so many years, it’s not exactly like the steak soup served at Kansas City’s Plaza III restaurant, now or back in the 1970s when we wheedled the recipe out of the general manager, but we still call it the P3 soup. For one thing, they used to add MSG and we quit that nonsense a long time ago. And yes, it’s made with hamburger and frozen vegetables, but that’s how they used to make it and it’s still delicious. As we mentioned elsewhere, Mom always insisted on serving us beef and vegetable soup on Christmas Eve, and this eventually became our go-to recipe.

You are hereby warned that this makes a huge quantity of soup, and frankly, it doesn’t freeze well. Either make it for Super Bowl Sunday, or a potluck, or cut the quantities wisely.

• 1 cup onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup carrots, diced
• 8 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup flour
• ½ gallon water
• 2 cups ground beef (go for the best grade you can find)
• 2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (we used to use Veg-All, which had corn, lima beans, peas and green beans, but it’s hard to find now)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (add the juice, too)
• 2 tablespoons Maggi seasoning
• 1 can beef consommé (or comparable amount of homemade beef stock)
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• Optional: 1 cup peeled diced potatoes

Parboil onion, celery and carrots for five minutes. In a large stockpot, melt butter and whisk in the flour; cook until it starts to turn dark gold. Add the water and stir. In separate pan, sauté ground beef; drain fat and then add beef and parboiled vegetables to stockpot. Add mixed vegetables, tomatoes, Maggi, consommé and pepper. Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender – at least one hour.

You’ll notice there is no salt in this recipe. With the Maggi and the consommé, we think there’s enough salt in the ingredients. If you are dubious, wait until the last few minutes before serving, and season to your taste.

This soup holds nicely all day in a crockpot, so it works well in a buffet.

As for the optional diced potatoes: we don’t usually bother, because we like to serve this soup with hot bread or dinner rolls. But if you want to add them, wait until the rest of the vegetables are cooked. Then turn up the heat to a modest boil, add the potatoes, and cook for another 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are fork-tender.

from our darling friend, chef, divine caterer and Plaza III alumnus Bob Salsman