Barley mushroom chicken soup

Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 1 cup red pepper, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 cups mushrooms, cut into bite-size pieces
  • 2 cups chicken or other broth
  • 6 cups water
  • 1 cup cooked, shredded chicken
  • ½ cup hulled or pearled barley
  • 2 cups mixed, chopped greens, such as spinach, beet greens or Swiss chard
  • ½ teaspoon each salt, pepper and dried thyme

Directions

  1. Heat oil on medium heat in a large pot. Sauté onion, pepper, garlic and mushrooms until soft, about five minutes.
  2. Add chicken broth and water to onion mixture; bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low. Stir in chicken and barley.
  3. Simmer until barley is tender, about 30 minutes for pearled barley, 60 minutes for hulled.
  4. Stir in mixed greens and seasonings in final 10 minutes of cooking.

Nutrition information

Per serving: 166 calories, 12 g protein, 21 g carbohydrate, 5 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 19 mg cholesterol, 5 g fiber, 291 mg sodium

Courtesy of the Well-Fed Heart