Amazingly Delicious Mushroom, Leek and Barley Soup

Whipped up this soup this morning with the fresh leeks that arrived in my veggie box yesterday and the mushrooms I had left over in the fridge. Knocked my taste buds into outer space!  Served it with roasted parsnips instead of bread.  This made a truly amazing lunch.  See how well you can eat when you’re my friend and you accept an invitation to dine chez moi?  If you ever get an invite, you definitely want to say yes!

Here’s how I made this subtle, yet vibrantly flavored soup:

• boil 1/2 cup pot barley in 6-8 cups of water
• while it’s boiling thinly slice one short, fat leek (or a long skinny one if that’s what you have!)
• sauté the leek in a little hot oil with
• 2 cloves garlic: sliced, diced, chopped
• add 2 cups thinly sliced closed cap mushrooms
• 1 small carrot sliced ‘n’ diced
• salt and pepper to taste (not too much!)
• when this is sautéed turn off the heat and wait until all the water has boiled off the barley, by which time the barley should be starting to soften
• add the softened (but not yet cooked) barley to the sautéed veggies
• boil the kettle
• add enough boiled water to cover the veggie/barley mixture
• mix 3 heaping teaspoons naturally good veggie gravy powder with about 1/2 cup of cold water
• stir the gravy mix into the pot
• bring to the boil, stirring occasionally
• when it starts to boil, reduce heat to just keep it simmering
• simmer until the barley is cooked

Related articles

• A Little Bit Ugly but has a Rocking Personality : Winter Vegetable Soup (chaoticallyme.wordpress.com)