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Bean & Barley Soup

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This comforting all-weather soup is great for cold nights but is light enough for a quick summer dinner. 

  • Author: Julie Smith
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 75
  • Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
  • Yield: 6 1x
  • Category: Soup

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 cups pearl barley, cooked (start with 1 cup pearl barley dry)
  • 3 – 5 tablespoons extra virgins olive oil
  • 3 – 4 carrots, diced medium
  • 3 – 4 celery stalks, diced or 1 medium fennel bulb, cored and chopped
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 8 to 10 ounces medium crimini or baby bella mushrooms, stems trimmed
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • Pinch of salt
  • Fine ground pepper
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 1 14-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes with liquid
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon marmite or vegemite
  • 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1 (15 ounce) can cannellini or other white beans with liquid (optional – rinse beans if you prefer)
  • 4 cups Better than Bullion No Beef Soup Base
  • 1 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme
  • 1 – 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
  • 1 (5 ounce) package baby kale or spinach, roughly chopped (6 cups) (optional)
  • 1 stick earth balance

Instructions

  1. Cook pearl barley according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
  2. Put water on stove in a medium pan or in microwave-proof measuring cup and bring to a boil. Stir soup bullion base into boiling water and set aside.
  3. Heat olive oil over medium low heat in a large heavy bottom pan.
  4. Add carrots to large pan distributing evenly. Chop vegetables in order (celery or fennel, onions, mushrooms, garlic) and add to pan as you go, layering without stirring. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
  5. Once carrots have begun to caramelize, about 5 minutes, stir and continue cooking until the mushrooms have given up all of their liquid. Add red wine and stir to deglaze the bottom of the pan, mixing all vegetables together. Add fire-roasted tomatoes, tomato paste, marmite or vegemite, nutritional yeast and beans with liquid. Stir to distribute.
  6. Pour in the hot bullion base, making sure to cover all the vegetables by at least ½ – 1 inch. This will cook down a bit. Stir in the thyme. Bring to a low simmer and cook until carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.
  7. Test carrots with a fork to make sure they are soft. Stir in cooked barley and kale or spinach. 
  8. Remove from the heat and stir in earth balance and more pepper if needed.

Notes

Another great substitution (or addition) is green beans for the spinach. Trim the ends and cut into 1 inch pieces. Add to the pot when there are 10 minutes left on the timer. They will be bright green the first day, and then dull green the second day but still amazingly delicious. 

Make a lot. This healthy bean and barley soup freezes very well. It also keeps in the refrigerator for up to a week and gets tastier on the second day. 

Keywords: Vegan Soup

Find it online: http://shiftycrafty.com/bean-barley-soup/