Country Herbed Barley Veggie Soup

I just love cooking great soups in the Winter to warm those chilly bones.  Tomato based soups are super easy and can be cooked on the stove top, slowly in a crock pot, or quickly in a One Pot pressure cooker.  The recipe below really should not need to be modified for any of these cooking methods.  I used a Stove Top but wouldn't hesitate to make this in a pressure cooker for a quick mid week meal.

Garbanzo beans and barley give this soup a hearty feel and served with some fresh bread, it's the perfect lunch or lighter evening meal.  Barley is one of those grains that I always seem to pick up in the bulk aisle and is perfect to have on hand to give soup a great texture and fullness.  It's the perfect ingredient in any vegetable soup.

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You will Need:

1 28oz. Can diced tomatoes

1/4 Cup Barley

1 cup green beans chopped into one inch pieces

1 large Yukon potato diced

2 Cups chopped Kale

3 Large carrots chopped

2-3 Garlic Cloves, Minced

1 Large onion, diced

2 Bay leaves

1 Cup Garbanzo Beans

2 stalks of celery, chopped

2 Tsp. Dried thyme, rosemary, and sage

2 Cups Vegetable Stock

1 TBSP Kosher Salt

Saute the onions and celery until translucent, then add minced garlic. Add the thyme, rosemary, and sage and stir for another minute until fragrant.  Add the remaining ingredients except Kale and simmer for an hour.  Add the Kale in the last 5 minutes of cooking.  Remove the Bay leaves unless you go with my theory that finding a bay leaf in your meal is good luck in which case leave them in the soup.  Serve hot with fresh buttered bread.

One Pot:  Use the Saute setting using the same initial step to saute the onions, garlic, and spices.  Add remaining ingredients except Kale and cook on a high pressure or soup setting for 15 minutes.  Quick release pressure and add the Kale.  Cover and let the Kale cook by the steam of the soup before serving.

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