Mung Bean Squash Barley Soup

This is one of my favorite soups for winter time, but its fresh taste can light up springtime meals as well.

Total time: 1 hour, including chopping and mung bean cooking. Makes dinner for 4-5 people.

Materials: Stovepot; frying pan; soup pot.

Ingredients:

Mung beans
Barley
1 onion
2 carrots
1 squash (any type)
Optional: leafy green (I like beet greens)
Salt, pepper, dill, fennel seeds, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, rosemary, caraway to taste

Instructions:

Boil mung beans in a very large pot of water (this will be the soup basis – if you’d like to use vegetable or chicken stock/broth, go for it). Sauté onion and chop squash and carrots. After about 10 minutes of boiling, add vegetables and continue boiling for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook barley in a smaller pot on the stove (or in a rice cooker) for about 20 mins. When it’s done, add it to the rest of the soup.
While the barley is cooking, add spices to the soup pot: salt, pepper, dill, fennel seeds, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, rosemary, caraway.
When the soup is nearing done, take out 2-3 cups to cool, then puree it. Add the purée back into the soup (this will help thicken the soup).

Greetings from our kitchen!