Photo of Mushroom-barley soup by WW

Mushroom-barley soup

3
Points®
Total Time
1 hr 20 min
Prep
15 min
Cook
1 hr 5 min
Serves
8
Difficulty
Easy
This old-fashioned soup is easy, hearty, and a perfect choice for a blustery winter day. Meaty mushroom and chewy barley are wonderfully satisfying. This soup freezes well, too, so you might want to make up a double batch while you’re at it so you’ll have some on hand. A small amount of wine is used in this soup. Most of the alcohol cooks off, leaving behind a great deal of flavor. However, if you’d like to leave it out, substitute 1/2 cup water and a tablespoon of white wine vinegar or use a bit more beef broth instead. Serve this soup with some crusty bread and a crisp green salad.

Ingredients

Olive oil

2 Tbsp

Onion

2 medium, chopped

Carrots

3 medium, chopped

Celery

3 rib(s), medium, chopped

White wine

½ cup(s)

Canned beef broth

9 cup(s), low sodium

Uncooked pearl barley

cup(s), pearl variety

Mushroom caps

20 oz, packaged

Fresh parsley

½ cup(s), flat-leaf, fresh, minced

Black pepper

tsp, freshly ground, or to taste

Fresh parsley

3 Tbsp, flat-leaf, fresh, minced (optional)

Instructions

  1. Heat large nonstick saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high. Add oil and swirl to coat pan. Add onions, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring constantly, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add wine and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced by one-fourth, about 3 minutes. Add broth and bring to simmer. Stir in barley. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until barley is tender, about 45 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, clean and trim mushrooms. Separate stems of mushrooms from caps, then chop stems and slice caps.
  3. Transfer 1½ cups cooked vegetables and barley plus ½ cup liquid to food processor. Purée until smooth. Return mixture to saucepan and stir.
  4. Stir in mushrooms, ½ cup parsley, and black pepper and bring to gentle boil. Cover and simmer until mushrooms are cooked, 15 minutes. Garnish with remaining 3 tbsp parsley (if using).Yields 1½ cups per serving.
  5. Serving size: 1 1/2 cups