This gutsy, flavorful soup is full of good stuff, and nothing bad. It has whole grains, plenty of vegetables, low in sodium with no added salt, low in fat, high in fiber. Try it once and you may never eat canned minestrone soup, ever again. Leftovers taste even better the next day, after the barley has had the chance to sit awhile, giving the broth a stew-like body.
This recipe works best with an 8 qt pressure cooker, but if you are using a 6 qt model, leave out 1 qt of the stock and transfer the contents of your pressure cooker pot to a larger pot after cooking, and then add the 2nd qt of stock.
Ingredients
- 1 cup barley
- 2 quarts unsalted chicken or vegetable stock (divided if you are using a 6 qt model pressure cooker)
- 1 large can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, no salt added
- 2 tsp Mrs Dash Italian blend
- 2 tsp smoked paprika (not regular paprika and not the hot stuff)
- Fresh ground black pepper
- 3-4 bay leaves (or 1/2 tsp ground bay leaf)
- 4 large spoons jarred chopped garlic, packed in water (or 4-6 cloves of fresh garlic, chopped)
- 3-4 carrots peeled and sliced thick
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 large zucchini cut up
- 20 green beans, cut up
- 1 medium turnip or 2-3 small turnips, cut up
- 1-2 handfuls frozen corn
- 2 cups fresh kale or turnip greens, torn into small pieces (don’t use the center stems)
- 2 cans beans, any type, no salt added
Directions
- Combine all above ingredients, in order, except canned beans, cover and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes, then quick release the pressure.
- Drain and rinse canned beans well, and stir in.
Serve with grated cheese (optional) and a good crusty bread.
Makes about 7 quarts.
