Soup Season

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and rang in the new year how they wanted to. I stayed home with my cats with a sore throat. I realized that it was my first NYE alone. There are years that I stayed home but it was always with the guy I was with at the time, my parents, or friends. It felt a bit weird but I knew I'd feel even worse today if I tried venturing out. I still woke up congested and sneezing but my throat definitely would have been more raw had I gone out.

I got to leave work early yesterday because it was so slow so I promptly made a pot of soup to remedy this dang cold. I don't follow a recipe anymore, I just kind of throw whatever I have in the fridge and it always turns out amazing.

You can use whatever pasta, rice, or grain you like in your soup. I like barley and bow ties in mine but sometimes throw in wild rice instead of barley. I also like flat yolkless noodles in my soups. I prefer my soups more 'meaty', almost like a stew. Broth is nice and all but doesn't fill me up!

I used to buy cartons of broth but I always ended up throwing most of them away since I used them for stir fry and would forget about it in the fridge. I love this stuff from Costco - it keeps for a year in your fridge and has a great taste. They're around $7 I think so they're also economical!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 red onion, chopped small
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 bell pepper, chopped into small pieces but not diced
• 1/2 zucchini, chopped into small pieces but not diced
• 1/2 large carrot, grated
• 8 cups of water or broth
• 2 non-measuring teaspoons of the bouillon paste (you can add less and see how it tastes, adding more if required)
• 1/4 cup dry barley, rinsed
• 1 cup bow tie pasta (I put about 3 handfuls that I grabbed out of the bag)
• salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• oregano, thyme, basil, parsley
• handful of chopped baby spinach

1. Prepare the veggies above and heat a large pot over medium high heat. Use a few tablespoons of olive oil and add the garlic and onions. Let them fry up until they're a bit brown for flavor
2. Add the bell pepper and zucchini. Let them cook for a few minutes and add the grated carrot
3. Once the veggies are cooked about halfway and browned add the water, bouillon, and herbs
4. Bring to a boil and add the rinsed barley. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes stirring occasionally
5. Add your pasta and cook for another 6 minutes, or more depending how cooked you liked your pasta. I like mine pretty soft and I find bow ties take a bit longer so I cooked it for another 8 minutes
6. Add the spinach with about 2 minutes left on the timer. It only needs to be wilted which doesn't take very long
7. Taste to make sure there's enough bouillon if you're using the paste, and season with salt and pepper as desired

This soup made my throat feel so much better and filled me up. You can obviously use a beef or chicken broth if you aren't vegetarian, it will still turn out great.

You can use any veggie really. I really like celery in my soups but they weren't very fresh when I went grocery shopping so I skipped it.

I hope you enjoy this soup as much as I am and let me know how it turns out if you make it! You can tag me on Instagram or use the hashtag #kschickfitness

Cheers and all the best in 2019!

-- Kelsey