This Crockpot Vegetable Beef Soup is a simple, comforting and delicious Midwestern classic. A hearty meat and potatoes dinner in a bowl, this soup simmers to perfection while you’re at work!

Juicy And Tender Crockpot Vegetable Beef Soup

This Crockpot Vegetable Beef Soup recipe has been in my Midwest family for generations. It’s the most comforting soup for anybody who is sick, just had a baby, or is just looking for a warm soothing meal to come home to on a cold day.

While for some reason my family refers to this as just “vegetable soup,” the star of this dish is actually beef short ribs. They add meaty flavor and make a luscious broth.

As my mom says about this recipe: “years of perfection!“. I hope your loved ones will love it as much as we do.

This Easy Potato Soup with chicken broth is made with smart ingredient choices like bacon, herbs and spices, and tangy Greek yogurt for a cozy meal with an upscale touch.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Zoup! All opinions are 100% my own.

Get Cozy With This Simple Potato Soup Recipe

I love a really great potato soup, but I couldn’t find one on the internet that I thought was perfect, so I made my own. While the list of ingredients may look long, a lot of it is fridge and pantry staples, so you probably have some of it on hand already.

The ingredients have been carefully chosen to make the most comforting, flavorful potato soup you’ve ever had. Everything from the right potatoes to the best broth to the pinch of nutmeg (learned that in culinary school!) comes together to create the most cozy meal ever.

And forget the other recipes that call for thickening potato soup with flour – you shouldn’t need to do that! All potato soup should be EASY potato soup, and this one doesn’t mess around with any unnecessary steps.

Shake up your potato salad game with Papas a la Huancaina, a Peruvian potato salad with a flavorful cheese sauce that can be made with ingredients from any grocery store.

What is Papas a la Huancaina?

Papas a la Huancaina is a traditional Peruvian potato salad, named after the Huancayo region of central Peru. It consists of boiled, sliced potatoes smothered in a unique and flavorful cheese sauce. It can be served an an appetizer or side dish.

I first started making it about a decade ago, when I worked at a food magazine. I was assigned the task of developing a Papas a la Huancaina recipe that could be made with ingredients from an American grocery store.

I tested this dozens of time before it was published, in order to get the ratio of potatoes to sauce correct, as well as make sure the cheesy habañero-infused sauce was pleasantly warm, but not too spicy for the average diner.

The recipe below is the result of many months of work, and dozens of tests. I hope you enjoy it as much as my family does.

This Potato Salad with Egg has been a Midwestern family favorite for generations. Potatoes, eggs, celery and onion, dressed with a mayonnaise-Thousand Island-mustard dressing. So classic and so good! 

Potato Salad Recipe with Egg

Here it is: the potato salad that has been in my family for generations. And if you’re from the Midwest like us, I’m going to guess that your family’s recipe is very similar. Honestly, this was probably published in the newspapers at some point, and that’s where all of our grandmothers got it.

My grandma made (and my mom still makes) this on pure vibes. No measurements, just making it up as they go along and eyeballing all of the ingredients.

I prefer to have some guidelines, at least as reference (which means I can share it with you, too). I might not measure everything precisely, but at least I know I need about a cup of mayo, about 1/3rd cup of Thousand Island dressing and about 2 teaspoons of yellow mustard.

The recipe card below does have exact measurements, and is the result of making my mom make her potato salad while I jumped in and measured everything she was adding. It’s perfectly creamy, tangy and hearty in the way only Midwestern potato salad can be.

For an easy restaurant-style appetizer or side dish, try these Greek Fries! They’re baked crispy in the oven then loaded with feta, onion, herbs and lots of lemon juice.

Meet your new favorite side dish: Greek French Fries

The first time I had Greek fries at a restaurant, I was instantly in love. And I’ve been chasing that feeling at home ever since.

Simply squeezing lemon juice over fresh hot fries is already a revelation. It’s rare that I don’t make fries at home without squeezing lemon over them now.

If you haven’t already tried that, start there. The bright, acidic lemon juice pairs with the richness of the fries in a way that will make you keep going back for another bite.

The next level up from that is more of a “loaded” Greek style fries situation. We’ll take a pile of freshly cooked fries and layer them with crumbly feta cheese, finely chopped red onion, fresh parsley and dill, a sprinkle of dried oregano, and of course, lots of lemon juice squeezed over everything.

When done right, oven fries should be golden brown and crispy on the outside and delightfully fluffy on the inside. A few simple techniques will help you achieve this.

Homemade Baked Fries Are Easy!

If you’ve tried other oven baked French fries recipes on the internet and have been disappointed, I don’t blame you. There’s a lot of bad information out there!

I’ve made french fries in the oven numerous times in my home kitchen, and there’s definitely some do’s and don’ts to be aware of. (If you’ve been told to bake them without soaking the potatoes first, or to cram them all on one pan, you’ve been misled!).

Forget sad, steamed potato fries that are limp and pale yellow and just not tasty. When done right, oven fries should be golden brown and crispy on the outside and delightfully fluffy on the inside. With a few simple techniques, you’ll be eating the fries of your dreams.

“Meat and Potatoes” isn’t an insult. Ground Beef and Potatoes is a wallet-friendly one-skillet wonder with no need for side dishes.

Skillet Ground Beef and Potatoes Recipe

“Meat and potatoes” is sometimes used in kind of negative way. Most often, it’s used implying that people from Midwest ONLY eat these two items.

That’s isn’t at all true, BUT if you are looking for a good recipe for meat and potatoes, you’ll definitely want to consult somebody from the Midwest.

And hi, that’s me, born and raised! I know how to make these ingredients taste their best.

If you have a pack of ground beef, two potatoes, and a handful of pantry ingredients, you’re well on your way to making this hearty skillet dinner that goes beyond just meat and potatoes. There’s lot of veggies here, too!