Soup secrets

Ohhhh yum. There's nothing better than vegetable soup from the garden. The secret to good soup is the stock.
"What did you do with the empty bags in the freezer?" she said.
"I threw them away," he said.
"Why did you do that?"
"Because they were empty," he said.
"Those are my stock bags," she said. "For my kitchen scraps."

That's correct. I empty those stock bags and return them to the freezer so they are ever so handy for the next time I clean broccoli and save the stock. Or perhaps the celery has gone past its prime. Or even leftover veggies. Even more importantly are the juices from roasting pans; the chicken or turkey carcasses; or trimmings from beef.

If you save that stuff - one Saturday you can say.... hmmm. It's time to clean out the freezer and make some soup.
Just dump that frozen stuff into a large stock pot and cover with cold water. Add old garlic cloves, an onion and some seasonings such as black peppercorns, three allspice balls, two bay leaves and some salt.
Simmer for a long time. Watch a movie, do the laundry, whatever. It does not matter it can simmer, not boil, for a good long time.
If you have to go to bed, cool it off, put the pot in the refrigerator and start cooking it again in the morning. When I feel that I have had enough of those wonderful smells I pour the stock through a colander and throw the remains into the compost heap. I then cool the stock thoroughly. You will notice the fat comes to the top and forms a seal. If you wish, you may freeze this with the seal and use it later. It will stay fresher. If not, skim off that top and begin creating your soup.
I saute some onion and celery in the bottom of a large pot and then add the soup stalk. Then comes the fun part.
Today's batch will feature garden garlic, onions, peas, beans, carrots and beets. I may splurge and add some meat. I will have to put in a few cabbage leaves and it will become borscht.
Don't forget the dill, Adding snips of fresh dill with give that soup a wonderful flavor... oh boy, I cannot wait.