Barley-Bean-Vegetable Soup

This makes a really stick-to-your-ribs, stew-like soup. I wasn't sure if I liked the starchiness of it at first, from cooking the beans in the soup all day, but it definitely grew on me.


1 cup dried multibean mix or Great Northern beans, picked over and rinsed
6 cups water
1 (14-ounce) can whole tomatoes, with juice
3 cloves garlic, smashed
2 ribs celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup pearl barley
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
2 teaspoons dried Italian herb blend
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, optional
3 cups cleaned baby spinach leaves (about 3 ounces)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Extra-virgin olive oil

Put beans, water, tomatoes and their juices, garlic, celery, carrots, onion, barley, bay leaf, 1 1/2 tablespoons salt, herb blend, pepper, and porcini mushrooms (if using) in a slow cooker; cover and cook on LOW until the beans are quite tender and the soup is thick, about 8 hours.
Stir in the spinach, cheese, and vinegar, cover, and let the soup cook until the spinach wilts, about 5 minutes. Taste and season with salt and black pepper, to taste.
Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and drizzle each serving with olive oil.

* I don't like mushrooms, so I left those out, but I used beef broth instead of plain water to make up for the missing flavor from the mushrooms. Also, I used parmesan from a jar instead of freshly grated parmesan, and it was definitely fine, but I think fresh parmesan would add a really nice nutty flavor that you just don't get from the generic canned stuff.

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