Creamy Chicken and Barley Soup

This is a hearty and healthy soup that has the same comfort properties of chicken noodle soup, but adds more fiber with the barley.  As barley cooks, it releases starches which make the soup really creamy without using cream.   I sautéed an onion until it was lightly caramelized, and added diced chicken and lightly browned it.  Then I added some carrots, celery, barley, thyme and chicken stock and cooked it for 45 minutes.  I added fresh chopped parsley right before I served it.  The barley really absorbs a lot of the liquid and it can get very thick, so add more chicken stock or water and taste for seasoning to get it to the consistency you want.  This is a great soup to take to someone who is under the weather to let them know you are thinking about them.  Click here for the recipe….