Slow Cooker Beef Barley Soup

Adapted from a Facebook post & outline by Rosie F.

This wonderful slow cooker soup features mouthwatering flavors along with proper nutrition that won't spiral your sugar numbers. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2+ lbs chuck stew meat - cut into 1" cubes

• 1-2 tsp garlic powder

• salt & pepper to taste - both for meat prep and later for slow cooker

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 8 oz baby carrots or regular carrots peeled and sliced

• 8 oz washed & trimmed celery heart - chopped

• 10 oz baby portobello mushrooms - sliced or chunks

• 1 large onion - cut up

• 32 oz beef broth

• 32 oz bone broth

• 20 oz diced tomatoes - fresh or canned

• 1 tsp dried thyme

• 2 tbsp apple cider or sherry vinegar

• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

• 1 cup pearl barley

Preparation:

In a large bowl season the stew meat with salt, pepper and garlic powder about 1-2 hours before starting the cook. Wash the carrots, celery and mushrooms. Cut up what needs cutting, including the onions, and set aside so everything is ready when it's time for the slow cooker assembly.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven and brown meat on all sides. Once that's done, don't drain the oil, just put the whole thing in the slow cooker. Add beef broth and bone broth to the Dutch oven and bring to just a simmer.

Add the baby carrots, the chopped up celery heart and the mushrooms (sliced or in chunks... your call) to the slow cooker and pour in the warmed up beef broth and bone broth.

Add the onions along with the thyme, and then add the diced tomatoes. At this point season with salt & pepper to taste and work in the apple cider or sherry vinegar along with the Worcestershire sauce.

Set slow cooker to low and cook for 6 hours. After 4 hours blend in the cup of pearl barley. The stew has all you need for a balanced meal, but a crisp tossed salad does pair really well.

Blessed be… and happy cooking!

Turkish Lamb Stew by Chef Michael R - A Definite Favorite

This is a hearty and rich Turkish stew made with white beans and diced lamb or beef slowly cooked in a tomato sauce. It is packed with lots of flavors and is the ultimate comfort dish for cold winter nights.

Ingredients:

• 2+ lbs diced lamb – most fat trimmed
• 2 15 oz cans cannellini beans– drained
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion - diced
• 3 cloves garlic - minced
• 2+ cups fresh tomatoes – chopped
• 5-6 oz baby portobello mushrooms – cut up
• 1/4 tsp crushed Aleppo pepper - more for extra heat
• 1 can tomato paste
• 32 oz beef stock or chicken stock
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp cumin - more if you love cumin
• 1 tsp salt

Preparation: 

Preheat the oven to 355° F. Toss the meat with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper.

Place a heavy-based pan or Dutch oven on medium to high heat. When hot, add the olive oil and brown the meat.

Add onion and garlic, saute until translucent and add mushrooms. Add the tomatoes and stir in the tomato paste. Add the beans along with salt, pepper, and cumin.

Pour in the beef stock or chicken stock and stir well. Make sure there is enough liquid to cover the beans.

Cover the pan with the lid and cook in the oven for 1 hour or until the meat soft. Make sure to check every 20  minutes and give it a stir. 

Serve with your favorite toasted bread and listen for the Yummy Noises that you're bound to here around the table!

Blessed be... and happy cooking! 

Black Bean & Pumpkin Soup - A Chef Favorite

Now that Halloween is over, why not put your uncarved pumpkin to good use? :-) I actually buy extras so I can cube, vac seal and freeze the flesh for use all winter long.

Today, as the temps are dropping, it's time for a nice earthy soup with some very good health benefits. This recipe is adapted from SmittenKitchen.com who apparently found the original recipe in a copy of Gourmet magazine who first published it way back in the mid 1990s. Enjoy!

I have to say it... This is one of the best soup's I've ever made!

Ingredients:

• 3  15 oz cans black beans – rinsed and drained
• 1 cup canned peeled tomatoes – drained and chopped
• 1 1/4 cups yellow onion - chopped
• 1/2 cup shallots – minced
• 4 cloves garlic – smash-minced
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp table salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 4 cups beef broth
• 15 oz can pumpkin puree – or make your own from Halloween pumpkins
• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 1/2 lb cooked ham – 1/8” dice – Use diced chicken breast for a healthier version
• 3 tbsp sherry vinegar
• sour cream and lightly toasted pepitas for garnish

 

In a food processor coarsely puree beans and  tomatoes.  Process one can beans and all tomatoes. Then add and process cans 2  &3 one at a time.

In a 6-quart heavy kettle cook onion, shallot, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper in butter over medium heat, stirring, until onion is softened and beginning to brown. Be careful not to burn the butter.

Stir in bean puree. Stir in broth, pumpkin, and Sherry until combined and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, 25 minutes, or until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

While the soup is simmering, use the time to roast the pepitas.

Use a dry skillet and medium heat. Remove from pan as soon as you see the color you like.

Just before serving, add meat and vinegar and simmer soup, stirring, until heated through. Season soup with salt and pepper to taste if needed.

Serve soup garnished with sour cream and toasted pepitas... maybe a sprig of greens if you want to get fancy. Serve with a warm crusty bread... or... as we did... a toasted English muffin. :-)

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Lentil, Barley & Chorizo Stew

 Adapted from a recipe by Lauren Sampson at Athlete Lunchbox.

This Red Lentil Stew with Chorizo is a delicious and satisfying twist on classic lentil soup. Packed with protein and fiber from the lentils and smoky chorizo, this hearty soup is bursting with flavor. I have substituted the original potatoes with pearl barley to make the soup more diabetic friendly. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2+ tbsp olive oil
• 10 - 12 oz Argentinian (mild) chorizo - diced or sliced - your choice
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 2 carrots - peeled & diced
• 3 garlic cloves - minced
• 2 tsp cumin - adjust to your preferences
• 1 tbsp sweet paprika - adjust to your preferences
• 1/4 tsp crushed Aleppo pepper - adjust to your preferences 
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 8 oz red lentils - rinsed
• 1 cup pearl barley - long cook - rinsed
• 3.5 cups diced tomatoes - fresh
• 64 oz chicken stock - preheated
• Greek yogurt - as needed/desired

Preparation:

Heat 1+ tbsp oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Make sure you let it come to heat first before adding meat. Add the chorizo and cook until slightly crispy and oil has been released. Remove the chorizo (keep warm), but leave oil in pan. This will be used to fry off the vegetables and allowing that flavor to come through the dish.

Add onion and carrots (plus a little more oil if needed) and saute until soft and fragrant (approx. 5-10 minutes). Add garlic, spices, sugar and vinegar. Fry for another minute.

Add stock, barley, lentils and tomatoes. Pre-heat the stock so it doesn't take forever in such a large pan. Stir well and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer for at least 40-45 minutes or until the lentils and barley are tender. You will find much of the stock soaked up by the barley. Keep extra stock handy for adjusting final consistency.

Adjust seasoning and heat level with yogurt or more Aleppo. Once it meets your flavor preferences, hit mixture with a stick blender until only slightly chunky.

Serve with the crispy chorizo and choice of toppings. A dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt works well. Scallions or chives make a nice garnish, too. The original called for crusty bread but this diabetic found the dish to be just fine without. :-)

Blessed be... and happy cooking!