Beef Barley Soup

In honor of what I hope is the last snow storm of the season, I served up steaming bowls of this hearty soup for dinner tonight. I threw it together this morning before logging into work - a little chopping, a little sauteing, and the prep was done in fewer than 20 minutes.

The beef practically fell apart, the veggies were tender without being overcooked, and the barley had a nice bite to it. Thankfully it was delicious, since it looks like we'll be eating it for the rest of the week for lunch!

Happy day before Spring!

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs. beef stew meat, cut to uniform size
• 1/2 C flour
• Salt and pepper
• 2 T canola oil, divided
• 4 carrots, finely diced
• 1 large white onion, finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 T Worcestershire sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 28 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 Quart beef stock
• 3/4 C pearled barley

Method:

1. Heat 1 T of oil in large saute pan over medium heat.
2. Combine flour, salt and pepper in gallon sized Ziploc bag. Add half of the beef and shake to coat evenly.
3. Remove beef from bag, shaking off excess flour. Add to saute pan and brown on each side. When done, remove beef from pan and add to slow cooker.
4. Repeat process with remaining oil and beef.
5. Add about 1/2 C of the stock to the hot saute pan and deglaze, scraping up browned bits from bottom of the pan. Add stock from saute pan to crock pot, along with the remaining stock.
6. Add all remaining ingredients to crock pot, except barley. Stir well.
7. Cook on low for 9 hours.
8. Add barley, increase to high, and cook for another hour.