Hearty White Bean And Barley Soup

Hi Friends!
Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend.
I made a really warm, soothing and delicious soup that I'd love to share with you. It was so perfect for us last night. SBG is nursing a cold and coughing quite a bit and after a super busy weekend, we were all dragging by the time Sunday afternoon rolled around.
Everyone walked away from the table with full, warm bellies, ready to soak in the bath and go right to sleep. We are still having a bit of June gloom and it was slightly chilly + overcast which was so perfect for this soup!
The texture is light enough that you would feel great eating it any time of the year - a rainy summer evening, a late fall afternoon or a chilly springtime lunch. It has lots of veggies and the barley gave it just the right amount of crunch... 
Perfect for a post run dinner with a crusty sourdough bread (which is exactly what we had - complete with dipping the bread in the soup!)
YUM.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

I like easy recipes and with 3 always hungry kiddos running around, I have to have substantial meals ready to go for dinner (and breakfast, lunch and snacks!). Every ingredient that went into this soup was super fresh and healthy...

I was able to prep a little bit ahead of time. I chopped the onion, carrots and celery...

Sauteed the veggies with 2 tablespoons olive oil, and added the garlic...

Then added the dry white wine...

Rinsed and drained the white beans...

Added all the other ingredients to the pot...

Brought it to a boil and then let it simmer for 30-45 minutes.

While the soup was cooking, I made the barley separately. Simply boil 3 cups of water and then add 1 cup of barley and simmer for 50 minutes. When the barley was finished cooking, I added it to the soup.

So good!!

Bon Appetit!

Hearty White Bean and Barley Soup

By: Natrunsfar (adapted from Meatless Monday.com)

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 carrots, diced

1 medium onion, diced

2 ribs celery, diced

1 head garlic, minced

28 ounce can crushed tomatoes

1/3 cup dry white wine

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

15.5 ounce can white beans, rinsed and drained

1 bag baby spinach, roughly chopped

6-7 cups vegetable broth

2 bay leaves

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

1 cup of barley, cooked separately and added to soup

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium high heat. Add in the carrots, onion and celery and saute for about 5-7 minutes or until the vegetables start to soften and brown slightly.

Add in the garlic and saute for another 2-3 minutes. Add white wine and scrape the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon removing any browned bits. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until wine has reduced by half.

Add in all the ingredients from crushed tomatoes to parmesan cheese. Bring soup to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer soup on low for 30-45 minutes.

While the soup is cooking, cook the barley. Boil 3 cups of water and then add 1 cup of barley. Simmer for 50 minutes and then add barley to the soup.

Add the chopped parsley before serving. Serve hot soup with extra parmesan cheese and parsley if desired.

I am linking up again this week with Tina and Deborah for Meatless Monday!
Definitely pop over and check them out for fantastic recipes - you'll be glad that you did! 

What is one word to describe your weekend?

Mine would be... delightful!

What are you most looking forward to this week?

My daughter graduates from preschool on Friday!

Happiness Is Running Life!

xo,

Natalie