Tasty Chicken (or Turkey) Barley Soup

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving week.  Ours was fabulous! We truly enjoyed an awesome time together with our kids and grandkids for brunch on Sat. and with friends of our hearts on Thursday. I had a heap of other sweet blessings during the week too. 
(No doubt, God knows I needed a boost as my precious hubby of almost 45 years is having a heart cath this week...after a stress test last week, drs. saw 2 areas of moderate to severe damage...we are trusting our Heavenly Father for each of our tomorrows, but do covet your prayers for Ron).  Onto the recipe...

This is a wonderful soup to use up your leftover turkey (instead of chicken.) 

We were both so glad I tried this recipe from Nancy at Skinny Kitchen. I make lots of her recipes and appreciate that she's done the work of not only making the recipes healthier, but she figures calories & Weight Watchers points...very helpful if you're trying to manage those things. 

This soup was not only hearty and delicious but full of vitamins and fiber from all the veggies....garlic, carrots, celery, onions and chopped butternut. My FAVORITE fall veggie, but I had never chopped it to add to soup before.  YUUUMMM!!

(Tip: poke holes into the whole squash and microwave for about 3 minutes. It will soften the skin so you should be able to peel it with a potato peeler.
I cut it in half {crosswise} before peeling). 

CHICKEN BARLEY SOUP 

1 (48 ounce) container Swanson’s reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 (32-oz) container Swanson’s reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 cup dried pearl barley

(I used quick)

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 cloves fresh garlic, minced

1½ cups carrots, sliced

1½ cups celery, sliced

1½ cups onions, chopped

1 (12 oz) bag peeled and chopped butternut squash or 2 ½ cups butternut squash, peeled and chopped, 

½ teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon dried sage

(I used a 'tuscany' store-purchased broth with added rosemary, thyme & basil,

so I skipped adding any more spices) 

Fresh ground pepper, to taste

1 lb. cooked turkey breasts or chicken, cubed

 In a large pot, add the chicken broth and barley. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

In the meantime, in a nonstick pan add the olive oil, garlic, carrots, celery, onions, and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the sautéed vegetables to the broth. Cook uncovered for 30 minutes

 Add the butternut squash, thyme, sage and fresh ground pepper. Continue to cook uncovered for 25 minutes. Add the cooked turkey and stir with a rubber spatula so the squash doesn’t get mushy. Cook for 5 minutes more.

This soup freezes great. 

Yield:  12 cups

From Skinny Kitchen Website:

Weight Watchers (old points) 2

Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS 3

SKINNY FACTS: for 1 cup 142 calories, 1g fat, 13g protein, 22g carbs, 5g fiber, 503mg sodium, 2g sugar

FAT FACTS: the skinny and fat facts are mostly the same except for the sodium content 145 calories, 2g fat, 13g  protein, 22g carbs, 5g fiber, 745mg sodium, 2g sugar