recipe: vegetable barley soup

As Tony was eating this vegetable barley soup, he said, "This soup has made me re-think my anti-soup stance." Apparently he doesn't like soup. Who knew? And now I'm thinking about all of the times I've made soup before ... apparently he didn't like it ... but he never said anything ...

You think you know everything there is to know about your spouse, and then you learn something new. Like earlier this week, in the car, All Star by Smash Mouth came on the radio, and I sang every word. Tony seemed to be equal parts impressed and bewildered.

Anyway, back to the soup.

This baby is good. It's got some spice to it. And it was my first-ever foray into barley soup making.

(Pictured above with rosemary bread, which I mentioned before. I've really got to post that recipe soon.)

Vegetable Barley Soup

Adapted from allrecipes.com

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup pearl barley, uncooked
• 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 large carrots, chopped
• 1 zucchini, chopped

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven. Add onion and cook over medium-low heat until browned, about 10 minutes.

Add garlic and cook a couple of minutes until browned.

Add curry powder, paprika and pepper and cook 1 minutes.

Add vegetable stock and water and bring to a boil.

Add barley, tomatoes, garbanzos, sugar, salt, carrots and zucchini. Reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes.

<3

Note: The vegetables will be very tender. If you want crispier veggies, wait to add the carrots and zucchini until about 15 minutes from the end of the cooking time.