Winter Barley Minestrone
with white beans / carrots / turnips
A bowl of vegetable-packed minestrone is the perfect cozy meal for cold winter months. This one gets a seasonal twist with root vegetables and cooked barley leftover from Tuesday.
Smarts #1: Miso paste gives this soup a rich, savory flavor. This Japanese ingredient doesn't only add flavor to Asian recipes - it's a great "secret" ingredient to stir into soups.
Smarts #2: This recipe could be made in the Instant Pot. For tips, join the Cook Smarts Instant Pot Facebook Group.
Ingredients
- Onions, medium - 1, chopped
- Carrots - 12 oz, chopped
- Turnips - 6 oz, chopped (sub rutabaga or potatoes)
- Garlic - 3 cloves, chopped
- Green onions - 2 stalks, chopped, green and white parts separate
- Beans, cannellini or other white (14 oz / 397 g) - 1 can, drained and rinsed
- Oil, olive - 1 Tbsp
- Miso paste - 1 Tbsp
- Oregano, dried - 1/2 tsp
- Thyme, dried - 1/2 tsp
- Stock, any type - 5 cups
- Tomatoes, petite diced (14 oz / 397 g) - 1 can
- Bay leaves - 1
- Cooked Pearl Barley (leftover from Tuesday) - 1 cup
- Lemon juice - 2 tsp
- Parmesan cheese (opt) - 1 oz, grated
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Onions / Carrots / Turnips / Garlic - Prep as directed. Combine onions, carrots, and turnips. Store garlic separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Green onions - Chop green onions, keeping green and white parts separate. (Can be done up to 3 days ahead)
- Beans - Drain and rinse.
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Make
- Heat a Dutch oven with oil over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, and turnips to heated oil with some salt. Saute until onions are starting to soften, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add white parts of green onions, garlic, miso, oregano, and thyme. Saute until spices are fragrant, ~2 minutes.
- Add stock, tomatoes (including liquid), and bay leaves to pan. Bring to a simmer. Cover with a lid and simmer until turnips are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Remove lid and stir in cooked barley and beans. Continue cooking until everything is heated through.
- Stir lemon juice into soup and season with some salt and pepper. Discard bay leaves.
- Ladle soup into bowls. Top with green parts of green onions and some parmesan cheese, if you’d like. Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
54 reviews
This was delicious. I combined the gluten-free and vegetarian options. It was hearty and wonderful with beans and brown rice. The whole family enjoyed it, especially with a little parmesan cheese on top.
0 HelpfulVery good! Lots of flavor, I doubled the batch so I would have leftovers and they were eaten up very quickly. I enjoyed incorporating turnips into our meal as well since we don’t often have those.
0 HelpfulMeh! This recipe is just a baseline. I’m not knowledgeable enough to take it to the next level.
0 HelpfulI was going to freeze the leftovers but then ate them all. Found this to be super quick in the instant pot and a good use of turnips.
0 Helpful