Day 7, Beef and Barley Soup

It's getting colder out so I will be making more soups. I just threw a bunch of stuff together today, not knowing what the outcome would ultimately be, and hoped it would turn out ok.

Beef and Barley Soup

1 pound beef, cut into 1/2 inch cubes, I used top round tip roast

small onion, chopped

celery stalk, one, chopped

1 cup carrots, chopped

Italian herb seasoning from grinder, approximately 1 tsp

1/8 tsp dried thyme leaves

peas, I used baby sweet frozen

1/2 cup barley, quick cooking

5 cups beef broth

Turn heat to medium and add cubed beef, onions, celery, and carrots. Cook until beef is browned and onions are translucent. Add seasonings to cooking mixture. Add frozen peas. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add barley. Bring soup back to boiling. Reduce heat to simmer, medium low heat. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, until quick cooking barley is done and carrots are tender.

Feeds about 10

It was one of those days that I didn't have a lot of time to make something and this soup only takes about a half hour to put all together. I was able to go out and get fresh ingredients today. I like making my soups from fresh beef. I was hoping it would turn out fine and it did. Everyone had seconds and even thirds. That's saying a lot for my picky eater. I didn't have to use oil to brown the beef. If you throw the meat into a cool pot and heat it as you're throwing ingredients in, you won't need to use as much oil. You won't get a deep brown, but when you're making soups, the meat doesn't need to be darkened. It just needs to be tender.The boiling process cooks the meat through.

Flavor Rating: Great, everyone had more than one bowl full.

Ease of preparation: Easy, there's a lot of chopping to do though.