Barley and Beef Soup

Make this soup the night before to allow time for its flavors to develop. Pour hot servings into a thermos to take for lunch, or reheat individual portions in the microwave as needed. Serve the soup with crusty bread, crackers, or Spicy Whole-Wheat Pita Chips.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 3/4 cups)

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 2  cups  chopped onion (about 1 large)
• 1  pound  chuck steak, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 1/2  cups  chopped peeled carrot (about 4)
• 1  cup  chopped celery (about 4 stalks)
• 5  garlic cloves, minced
• 1  cup  uncooked pearl barley
• 5  cups  fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
• 2  cups  water
• 1/2  cup  no-salt-added tomato puree
• 1/2  teaspoon  kosher salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 2  bay leaves

Preparation

1. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add chopped onion and beef to pan; cook 10 minutes or until onion is tender and beef is browned, stirring occasionally. Add chopped carrot and chopped celery to pan; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic; cook 30 seconds. Stir in barley and remaining ingredients, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 40 minutes or until the barley is done and vegetables are tender. Discard bay leaves.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

275

Fat:

5g (sat 1.6g,mono 2.3g,poly 0.5g)

Protein:

21.8g

Carbohydrate:

36g

Fiber:

8g

Cholesterol:

43mg

Iron:

3.1mg

Sodium:

649mg

Calcium:

57mg