Homemade Beef and Barley Soup

1tsp oil
1/4 onion chopped
1 large carrot chopped
1 celery stalk chopped
beef or vegetable broth
hamburger/roast beef (optional)
1 medium can diced tomatoes (no salt added)
1/4 c pearl barley
1 tbsp tarragon
1 bay leaf
1 tsp thyme

To make vegetarian, use vegetable broth and eliminate the beef.
To make sodium free, use sodium free broth and tomatoes. You can also make your own broth.
Add vegetables as you like to make the soup chunkier.

Saute the onion, carrot, and celery. Add the broth and canned tomatoes, tarragon, bay leaf and thyme. Add either 1/4 cup of shredded roast beef or already cooked and rinsed hamburger. Meat is optional. Bring to a boil, add the pearl barley and simmer for 25 minutes. Serve with bread and cheese.


Serving Size: Makes 3 large bowls of soup.

Number of Servings: 3

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user NBOURGET299.