The last few days have been cloaked in fog, freezing temperatures, and a deep desire to hibernate. Life goes on, though, and so must we. It seems that it's easier to push through the winter cold by making robust, yet healthful foods that will nourish our sun-deprived souls and bodies. Soup so easily fills that bill.
This soup couldn't be more simple with only about five ingredients and roasting them before making the soup adds yet one more layer of coziness. Cubed sirloin steak, chunks of mushrooms, and shallots are tossed with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper, then roasted for about thirty minutes.
They come out of the oven beautifully browned and ready to be put into the pot of beef broth that's already simmering on the stove, cooking some barley (or brown rice, if you prefer).
I used pearl barley and can buy it in the bulk section of my grocery store, but you might choose to use quick-cooking barley or brown rice. As soon as the mushrooms and beef went into the oven to roast, I put the beef broth on the stove to cook the barley and it was ready when the mushrooms and beef came out of the oven. Just follow the instructions on your package of barley and you'll be fine.
See? I told you it was super simple. Dinner can be on the table in less than an hour, but if you wanted to save more time on a weeknight, you could cube the beef and mushrooms ahead of time and even freeze them. Or you could make the whole soup and freeze it, too, so that it's easily reheated on a busy weeknight.
If you don't like mushrooms (like a couple of people in my house!), I suggest still using them because they combine so well in flavor with the beef, but perhaps you could use fewer and add more meat or another vegetable, like chunks of carrots or parsnips, or both!
{Scroll past the last photo to download a PDF of the recipe.}
Bon Appetit!
