85 degrees in AZ...time to make some soup.

To be fair, it was windy all day and currently it is 70 degrees. For us Arizonans, that is a little bit chilly. And for some strange reason, all the buildings on campus are kept at 50 degrees. Hence, I was really craving some soup. (Despite having too many leftovers in the fridge...story of my life).

I made the best after-school snack today.

Pumpkin-chia seed yogurt* topped with a warm pumpkin bar with melted dark chocolate and a dollop of SunButter.

*Pumpkin-chia seed yogurt: a few large spoonfuls of nonfat plain yogurt, a few smaller spoonfuls of pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and a tablespoon of chia seeds.

It was literally a combination of solid and liquid forms of pumpkin. I know it sounds crazy, but it was really tasty.

After that hearty snack, soup seemed like a good idea for dinner. (That, and the fact that it was 85 degrees outside).

Mushroom-Cabbage-Barley Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• 1/4 cup barley
• cabbage
• mushrooms
• celery
• garlic
• black beans
• paprika
• salt/pepper
• cheese (optional)

First, I cooked the barley. I added the vegetable broth and barley to a pot, let it come to a boil, and then lowered the heat. I covered this pot and let it simmer for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, I chopped the veggies, and sauteed them lightly with the garlic and a bit of oil. (I cheated and used canned mushrooms...sometimes it's just easier that way!) I added the cabbage and celery after the mushrooms had a chance to heat up.

I added this mixture to the barley pot, along with half a can of black beans, and the two cups of water. I also added salt, pepper, and about 1.5 teaspoons of paprika.

I covered this and let it simmer on low for 30 more minutes. Then I topped it off with some parsley.

I was feelin' some cheese. But not just grated cheese. Feta cheese.

I put a few feta crumbles in there, along with some crushed red pepper. Soup craving = satisfied. Hearty? Yes. Extremely.