Beef. Barley. Baby leek soup.
This recipe was directly inspired from www.smittenkitchen.com as I was doing an internet search for uses for the (two week availability) baby leeks I had a sample of from Coke Farm. We also happened to be in the middle of the storm we had been so desperately needing, as schools were closed and people were staying home from work, so I was so happy when she gave me this simple soup recipe. This may be the easiest soup I have ever made. It smells delicious slowly cooking while we watched the storm.
1. Trim two big, meaty short ribs and put them on the bottom of your soup pot.
2. Add 1/2 cup of barley, three big cloves of garlic shopped up, two chopped onions, and three leeks cut lengthwise and then into segments–use both the white and the green parts. I added crimini mushrooms, you could add any other vegetables you might like. Grind in a little black pepper.
3. Add about eight cups of filtered water or beef stock ( I like the way beef stock makes the dish rich) and let it simmer on the back burner for at least three hours while you go about your business.
4. Before serving, skim off the fat, take the meat off the bones, chop it and put it back in the soup.
Now invite all your friends that are playing hooky from work too, serve with some crusty bread, maybe a little whiskey for added warmth and you have yourself a storm party. You might even be warm enough to go play in the puddles and the mud.
brigitte in the kitchen 