CELERY & SWEET POTATO SOUP W/BARLEY

Celery & Sweet Potato Soup w/Barley image

Provided by Kimberly Biegacki

Time 4h20m

Number Of Ingredients 14

1 Tbsp olive oil
4 stalk(s) celery, coarsely chopped
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
3 clove garlic, minced
2 medium roasted sweet potatoes, peeled & diced
1 can(s) tomatoes, diced
1/2 c pearl barley, uncooked
6 c vegetable broth (i added 3 cups broth & 4 cups water)
SPICES
1 tsp oregano, dried leaves, crushed
1/2 tsp basil, dried leaves, crushed
1 - 2 Tbsp celery leaves, dried (optional)
2 tsp beau monde seasoning (optional)
1 tsp black pepper & salt

Steps:

1. Drizzle oil into pot and set on STOVETOP HIGH. Heat oil for several minutes, then add celery & onion to pot. Cook them uncovered 10 minutes or until veggies are tender-crisp, stirring occasionally. Then stir in your minced garlic & cook uncovered 2 minutes, stirring often.
2. Stir in your potatoes, spices, tomatoes & barley. Set to SLOW COOK HIGH FOR 4 TO 5 hours. Cover pot and cook until the barley & potatoes are tender. (The recipe in cookbook states to cook 4 to 5 hours but my soup was perfectly cooked at 3 hours. When I reheated it the next day and cooked it for another 45 minutes it was more the consistency of a thick stew instead of soup. So, for me I like it better at 3 hours but it's all in how you prefer your soup. I would watch it after 3 hour mark and determine what you want to do.)
3. Serve up a bowl and sit down and enjoy. I served bacon wraps with this soup and they are so easy to make. Here is recipe. You can click on the link and it will take you to it. https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/appetizer/meat-appetizer/bacon-wraps.html?p=27