Bean & Barley Broth

This recipe is based on a River Cottage one, which has had a few changes made here and there till it evolved into something new. It is a very forgiving recipe and can be used to get rid of the little odds and ends of veg lying around in the bottom of the fridge. A bit of turnip or swede, a parsnip, some mushrooms or some spinach (added right at the end in the case of spinach), would all sit happily in this earthy and filling soup.

It freezes really well, and doing so develops the flavours even more!

Serve with a big chunk of homemade bread to soak up all of the delicious broth.

Bean & Barley Broth

Serves 4-6 

1 tablespoon butter

2 onions, diced

1 bay leaf

A sprig of rosemary/thyme, leaves chopped finely

3 small carrots, diced

2 sticks of celery, diced

1/4 teaspoon of ground corriander

A shake or two of cayenne pepper, ground cumin, and nutmeg

100g pearl barley

1.5 litres of stock (I use two stock cubes, one vegetable, the other either chicken or beef)

1 tin of baked beans, rinsed of tomato sauce

Salt & pepper

Put the butter, onions, bay leaf and rosemary/thyme in a large pan over a medium/low heat. Sweat them together for about 15 minutes, till the onions are incredibly soft and almost translucent, stirring regularly.

Add the carrots, celery and continue for another 5 minutes.

Add your spices (exact quantities are entirely to preference), stock and pearl barley, and simmer on low for 20 minutes. At this point add your rinsed beans and let it blip away for 10 minutes longer.

You can eat as is, or, as I like to do, pulse it a bit with a hand blender (if you don't own a hand blender you could decant some to a blender or use a potato masher), just to make it a little thicker. Season to taste before serving. 

Welcome to my humble abode

Welcome to Tory's Kitchen! I'm Tory, it's nice to see you here.

This is a very new venture for me, I've never written anything like this before, so bare with me. I want this space to become a collection of recipes and ramblings that may inadvertently save you a few quid here and there - how good would that be?

I myself am a mother to one fussy 5 year old boy, and wife to an equally fussy husband. I love cooking and baking and will give most recipes a try once, you have to experiment with these things no?

Fussy boy won't eat much in the veg department, he proudly heralds my mashed potato as the best he's ever eaten, so I can sometimes, if I'm careful, smuggle other vegetables into him that way. Trojan Horse mash if you will.

Fussy husband is a pure northern meat and two veg type. He is afraid of fruit. It's almost more difficult to feed him, however as time goes on I'm winning out with the odd meat free meal here and there. He will actually try just about anything I plate up for him, which I am extremely grateful for.

So, the reason for me writing this blog is to eventually change small habits of yours and mine, save you a bit of cash, and make you more accomplished and proud of your achievements in the kitchen. 

Anyone can cook! And it's worth giving up ready meals, and turning toward the fruit and veg aisles to whip up a quick pot of soup. Would you rather eat store bought at a large expense, full of preservatives, sugar and salt? Or something that took you 20 minutes to create, cost pence, and the list of ingredients is 5 long? I'm firmly in the second camp!

Right, everyone with me? Lets get started then.