7 Bean and Barley Slow-Cooker Soup

I made this soup for the first time, and it turned out delicious! Most grocery stores carry the 7 bean, or multi-bean soup mixture in a bag. If not, then you can select which ever beans you prefer for this recipe. As with any recipe feel free to improvise as much as you'd like. I've recently found that adding a couple of teaspoons of celery salt to any soup or stew will give it an additional yummy flavor. And I love adding spinach or kale to soups and stews. Enjoy!

#soup #stews #slowcooker #recipes #healthy #7beansoup 

Ingredients:

• 1-2 cups of 7 bean, or multi-bean mixture. (or any beans of your choice)
• 1/2-1 cup of pearl barley
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed
• 2 medium carrots, roughly chopped
• 2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons herbes de provence or Italian seasoning
• 2 teaspoons celery salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• One 14-ounce whole tomatoes, with juice
• 3 cups cleaned baby spinach or kale
• 1/4 freshly grated parmesan

Directions:

Put 6 cups water, the beans, barley, garlic, carrots, celery, onions, bay leaf,   1 1/2 tablespoons salt, celery salt and herbs, pepper in a slow cooker. Squeeze the tomatoes through your hands over the pot to break them down, and add with their juices. Cover and cook on high until the beans are quite tender and the soup is thick, about 8 hours. Add the spinach and cheese and stir about 5 minutes. Remove bay leaf and serve.