Soup's On!

The weather cooled off a bit around here the past few days, and hot soup is sounding good again, so I decided to try out another of Leslie's soup recipes. I made this on Sunday, and it's delicious!

Leslie's Hearty Mushroom Barley Soup

Nonstick cooking spray
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1/2 cup quick cooking barley (use 3/4 cup for a thicker soup if desired)
2 cans (14 ounces each) fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
12 ounces sliced mushrooms (I used baby portabellas)
1 can (about 10 ¾ ounces) 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 teaspoon reduced-sodium Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ cup finely chopped green onions
¼ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon of black pepper

Step 1: Coat Dutch oven or large saucepan with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat or until hot. Add oil and tilt pan to coat bottom of pan. Add onions; cook and stir 8 minutes or until onions just begin to turn golden. Add carrots and cook and stir 2 minutes.

Step 2: Add chicken broth, mushrooms, cream of mushroom soup, barley, Worcestershire sauce and thyme; bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until carrots are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in green onions, salt and pepper and enjoy!

PS: I forgot to buy the green onions, so to add a little extra flavor, I added some grated Locatelli cheese--and some rosemary to help me remember these things . . . not sure if it helps or not. . .