Nutrients in frozen veggies are quite high

In the dead of winter, fresh produce at the supermarket can look and taste a little lifeless, that's if you can find it at all.

This is the time of year we start stalking the frozen vegetable aisle. We used to feel a bit guilty about this until we read the research. Turns out frozen veggies are just as healthy as fresh.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studied and compared the nutrients in fresh and frozen vegetables over two consecutive years. The freezing process locks in nutrients and preserves their quality for up to a year, the study results showed.

As long as the vegetables are frozen quickly after harvesting, the nutrients in frozen vegetables are quite high. In fact, the study showed nutrients may be higher than in fresh vegetables that have been sitting on the supermarket shelf long past their peak freshness. (These days, produce grown in the United States travels an average of 1,500 miles from farm to supermarket. On average, produce is picked four to seven days before it ever reaches the supermarket shelf.)

Today's recipe for Beverly's mom's 20-minute Vegetable Beef Soup features frozen mixed vegetables, and we don't think we could make it through winter without it.

Menu: Mom's Vegetable Beef Soup

Assorted crackers and cheese

Pineapple spears

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MOM'S VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP

Start to finish: 20 minutes

Cook's note: Several companies make frozen vegetable blends. Use any mixture that doesn't contain any sauce, broccoli or cauliflower, which are too strong for this soup. Quaker brand makes quick-cooking barley. You'll find it in the supermarket alongside the regular barley. If you can't find it, ask the store manager to order it for you. (Or you can substitute medium-pearl barley and increase the boiling time in Step 3 to 45 minutes before adding the vegetables.)

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 large onion (for about 1 cup chopped)

1 pound of 93 percent lean ground beef, defrosted if frozen

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

4 cups water