Hi. My name is Mark and this is my cooking blog.
I get asked a lot for my recipes, so I decided to start this cooking blog. What you’ll find here will be my recipes and my variations on others’ recipes, my cooking tips and who knows what else.
I should say up front that I’m lactose intolerant (check out my lactose intolerance site www.nowhey.org) and I also try to live a low-carb lifestyle. So the recipes you’ll find here will generally be devoid of milk and milk products and try, wherever possible, to be low in carbs.
I hope you enjoy the site and the recipes.
Mark
This is a hearty soup, perfect for a cold evening. Very flavorful and creamy, yet uses no butter or extra fat. This recipe is for the slow cooker and is easy to make.
Ingredients
(makes about 8 large servings)
1.5 lbs lean beef – sirloin or top round – but just about any cut will do – cut into 1″ cubes
2 cups beef broth (see note)
2 cups chicken broth (see note)
1 oz dried porcini mushrooms
6 ozs fresh crimini or brown mushrooms, sliced
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 carrot, diced
1/2 cup pearl barley
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbs reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup cream sherry
1/2 cup red wine (optional)
Put all the ingredients into the slow cooker (except the red wine) and stir well to combine. There’s no need to pre-brown the meat, but you can if you like. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 7-8 hours.
You can serve it immediately or it’s even better the next night. If you use the full 1/2 cup of barley, the soup may be too thick for your liking. If so, cut the amount of barley in half or add 1/2 cup of good red wine at the end to thin the soup.
Notes:
I use Better Than Bullion to make the stock, but you can also use low sodium canned/boxed or home-made stock. If using 14 oz cans, add 1/2 cup of water or red wine to bring the volume up. You can put everything in the slow cooker pot the night before and put it into the refrigerator – then put in on in the morning. If you’re doing this, make sure the stock is cool.
