The ice and snow we have had recently had me craving soup, but not just any soup. Not only did I want something to warm me up but I needed something filing as well. Plus I was really craving vegetables.  I found this recipe in Matt Fitzgerald and Georgie Fear’s cookbook, Racing Weight, which has become my go-to cookbook for yummy, easy to fix recipes designed with the athlete in mind! In other words, every dish I have made from this book leaves me feeling satisfied! 

I adapted this recipe to fit my tastes and to provide me with a little more protein and below is my version of the soup. It is super easy and makes 4 servings and takes approximately 35 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 cups water
• 1 cup pearl barley, rinsed and drained
• 1 6-ounce can organic tomato paste
• 2 cups Swiss chard (or spinach), finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 handful fresh basil, shredded
• 1 16-ounce can great northern beans or cannellini beans
• Feta cheese to taste
• 2 cups vegetable broth*

Directions:

In a large pot, heat olive oil and garlic over medium heat and cook until fragrant. (I also sprayed a little olive oil cooking spray to completely coat my pan.)

Add water and barley, and raise to high heat. When water boils, turn down to low and cover. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Add tomato paste, chard, and salt, and stir to dissolve tomato paste. Simmer for 15 minutes longer. Add basil and beans for the last 2 minutes, then remove from heat. Serve with feta cheese sprinkled on top of soup.

*This is the first time I have cooked with barley and didn’t realize how much of the liquid would be absorbed by the leftover soup. I added 2 cups of organic vegetable broth the following day because I wanted a more liquid consistency versus a chunky feel.  For my leftovers I topped it with avocado slices instead of feta cheese.

Final Thoughts:

I must say I am in love with barley and will be looking for other ways to include it in my meals. I love the texture which is almost crunchy but yet soft. It has a bit of a nutty flavor which adds interest to an otherwise boring tomato soup. It’s been the perfect meal for my post treadmill runs in the cold garage! It was also a nice change of pace to the previous 3 days of meat which included pot roast, elk backstrap, roasted veggies, mashed potatoes and gravy.

Snow makes me grateful for a treadmill in the garage!