Mushroom Barley Soup with Shaved Parmesan

This easy Mushroom Barley Soup uses three types of mushrooms, a bit of sherry and shaved Parmesan to up the flavor ante. Less than 10 ingredients, too!

This Mushroom Barley Soup will make you glad to be alive.

It’s so healthy that it just might help you live longer, too.

The mushrooms in this easy soup add such amazing flavor and have a great texture – you’ll never even miss the beef. Although you could certainly add some if you’re so inclined. It’s actually the perfect soup to just toss in whatever’s left from that steak you had at dinner the other night. You know, the one you couldn’t finish because you were too busy devouring these potatoes. Or these potatoes. Or THESE potatoes!

But I didn’t add my leftover steak and I didn’t miss it one tiny bit. Mushroom Barley Soup is thick and hearty, it’ll fill you up with just one bowl and stick with you for awhile. I used three kinds of mushrooms – white button, shitake and baby portobellos – which really ups the flavor ante. At first serving, the soup is thick but still has plenty of broth. However, after sitting overnight, most of the liquid will have been soaked up, making it less of a soup and more of a side dish. You could leave it like this – it’s delicious! – or just add more beef broth until it’s back at the consistency you enjoy.

The shaved Parmesan is killer in this Mushroom Barley Soup, too. I chose to shave it instead of grate it because I like the way it breaks up in the soup and you get little tiny chunks of cheesy, salty goodness. Grated would certainly work well, too, go with what you’ve got. I use Parmigiano-Reggiano which is what I recommend if you can get it. It’s pricy but the flavor makes it all worth it. If you have some and it has a good rind on it, toss the rind into the soup while it’s simmering – an easy way to get more flavor out of something you’d just toss in the trash! I save my Parmigiano-Reggiano rinds and keep them in the freezer; I’ve never met a soup that couldn’t use one :)

More delicious soup recipes:

• Lentil Soup Recipe with Parmesan & Smoked Sausage
• Pasta Fazool | Pasta e Fagioli
• Navy Bean Soup with Bacon
• Mulligatawny Soup
• Chicken Tortilla Soup with Hatch Chiles

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Mushroom Barley Soup with Shaved Parmesan

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes

This easy soup has less than 10 ingredients yet a rich, deep flavor.

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3-4 cups chopped mushrooms, a mix of button, shitake and portobellas
• 6 cups reduced-sodium beef broth, more to add the next day if too much liquid gets soaked up
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• 1 cup barley
• kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
• shredded parmesan, for topping

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add onions, celery and carrots, saute until onions are soft, about five minutes. Add garlic, saute two minutes more.
2. Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms have released their liquid, continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally.
3. Add beef broth, sherry and barley. Bring to a gentle boil then reduce heat and keep at a simmer, cooking another hour.
4. Season to taste with kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper. Top with shredded parmesan and serve.

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 175Sodium: 360mgCarbohydrates: 27gFiber: 7gSugar: 4gProtein: 8g

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Kristy Bernardo

Kristy Bernardo is the recipe creator behind The Wicked Noodle. She's a five-time cookbook author, has taught cooking classes to both kids and adults, and has been creating recipes for nationwide brands since 2009. She learned most of her cooking skills from her mom and grandmother, then honed those skills at boot camp at the Culinary Institute of America.

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