Recipe- Lentil and Barley Soup

Lentil and Barley Soup

Although it is not even August yet, I was in the mood to create a soup today.  I checked my freezer and pantry and decided to throw this together.  The result was healthy and delicious.  All five of my kids enjoyed it, which was great since it contains a bunch of vegetables.  I did add some chopped chicken that I had in the freezer, but it could easily be made vegetarian by leaving the chicken out and subbing vegetable broth for the chicken broth.  I loved the convenience of making this since I had the onions and peppers already prepped and frozen. Enjoy!

Ingredients
- 1 cup onion, chopped (about 1 medium)
- 1/2 cup chopped green pepper 
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 8 cups of chicken broth (I used homemade stock I had frozen, but you could easily use bouillon cubes or canned broth)
-  3 medium carrots, sliced (you can halve or quarter larger slices)
-  1/2 cup dried lentils (I used red, but any lentils should work)
- 1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 3/4 tsp Kosher salt 
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup medium barley
- 1 cup chopped mushrooms (about 2 medium mushrooms)
- 28 oz. diced tomatoes, undrained (can also use crushed tomatoes) 
- 1 cup cooked chicken, chopped (optional) (you could really add any cooked meat and it would go well with this soup)

Steps
1) In a soup pot, add the onions, green pepper, garlic, and butter.  Over medium-high heat, saute until tender, about 5 minutes.
2) Add in broth, carrots, lentils, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and barley; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and cover.  Simmer for 35 minutes.
3) Add meat (if using) and mushrooms; return to a boil.  Reduce heat and cover.   Simmer for an additional 10 minutes or until carrots are tender.
4) Add the tomatoes and heat through, about 1 minute.

Makes about 8 servings