Barley and Mushroom Soup

Nothing warms one up better and more deliciously than a hot soup on these freezing days, therefore we’ll be featuring a few of our favorite soup recipes over the next few days.

From Elizabeth Wolf-Cohen‘s Perfect Jewish, published in 2008 by Parragon Publishing in the UK (page 13, photo on page 12):

Barley & Mushroom Soup

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 oz dried wild mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, finely chopped
• 1 small rutabaga, finely chopped
• 1 lb mushrooms, chopped
• 4 cups vegetable stock *
• 1 1/4 cup barley
• 1 tablespoon salt
• chopped fresh dill, to garnish

Directions

1. Put the dried mushrooms into a small heatproof bowl or measuring cup, and pour over enough boiling water to cover. Leave the mushrooms to soak for 20 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until softened. Add the carrots, rutabaga, and fresh mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Pour in the stock and bring to a boil over high heat, skimming any foam that rises to the surface. Rinse the pearl barley in a strainer under cold running water and stir into the boiling liquid. Add salt and pepper to taste. Reduce the heat to low simmer for 30-35 minutes, or until the vegetables and barley are tender adding more stock if necessary.
4. Using a slotted spoon, carefully lift the dried mushrooms out of their soaking liquid (do not pour through a strainer or the sand will go into the mushrooms) lice or chop the mushrooms and add to the soup.
5. Strain the mushroom liquid through a muslin-lined sieve into the soup. Continue to simmer or until the mushrooms are tender, adding more stock if necessary. Serve hot, garnished with dill.

0-0-0oo0-0-0

* Vegetable Stock (follow link)

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS