OMG! I made THE most delicious soup this weekend!

I had made a chicken vegetable soup before, and had thrown in some leftover lentils as an afterthought to get some added protein. It came out pretty good, but I had already marinated the lentils in turmeric and spices, so the soup ended up having a bite I wasn’t exactly crazy about. This time, I soaked lentils and barley in vegetable broth prior to adding the rest of the ingredients (another mistake I made last time – adding dry barley with everything else. Those babies soak up every inch of moisture!).

I’m an “everything but the kitchen sink” kinda cooker, especially when it comes to making soup. I want something that’s going to be clean, hearty, and give me all the requirements of a meal… and I also want to clear the fridge of food that’s even thinking about going bad. So, using vegetable broth as my base, I threw in diced raw chicken breast, raw diced collards, celery, onion, a shitload of mushrooms (I use dried mushrooms of all varieties), the lentils and barley, garlic, wild rice, peas, carrots, and tons of spices. No measurements, no tea or tablespoons… just the “toss in” technique. I let it all simmer for an hour or two, and then divvied up the enormous vat o’ soup into freezer bags for individual daily consumption.

I don’t usually test food while I’m cooking, knowing it tastes MUCH better on Day 2. Today, I broke out the soup for Meal 3 of 6, and YOWZA! I mean, DELICIOUS! Scrumptious! Exactly what I was going for! The beans and barley make it so hearty, and the mushrooms really add a thickness to the broth. Such a perfect meal.

Push over, Julia Child!