thoughts of austin on my mind.

However, in other news, I made a delicious soup for dinner tonight with garlic toast.


Chicken Barley Soup


4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup of celery, chopped (3-4 stocks)
1 cup of carrots, chopped (4-5 medium sized)
1 package of baby bellas, sliced (I removed the stems)
2 tbsp. of olive oil
4 chicken breasts, roasted* and chopped
2 1/2 quarts of chicken broth
1 cup of barley, precooked or soaked overnight
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper


Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-medium high heat. Sweat the onions for a few minutes then add garlic. Add celery, mushrooms, carrots and salt and pepper until tender. Add cooked chicken, broth and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add barley, reduce heat to the lower medium side and cover. Let simmer for about 20 minutes. Side with toasted crusty bread rubbed with garlic!


*To roast the chicken, heat the oven to 400 F. Season each breast with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil on each side. Slap those breasts onto a foil lined baking sheet. Let roast for about 20-25 min and flip letting the opposite side roast for about the same time. You can use a meat thermometer or just cut open the breast to check for any rawness. I also precooked the barley during this time while I chopped up the veggies.

Not the most flattering soup picture, but you get the idea...