Hearty & Healthy Beef and Veggie Soup

There's nothing better on a COLD Minnesota winter evening than hot soup.  Bonus if it's healthy and can fit into one of my meal plans!  I love tossing random things into a crock pot, and coming home to a hot dinner and house that smells wonderful.

Last week my soup was beef & veggie.  I've been using tons of veggies in my soups this winter to make it a little more interesting and to bump up our nutrient intake.  There is SO much illness going around that extra nutrients can't hurt. 

Ingredients:
- Stew Beef (1 packet of it, all pre-cut from Hy Vee)
- 1 container low sodium beef broth (not stock)
- 1/4 a container of low sodium chicken broth (if you're not cooking it for longer than 6 hours you probably don't need this.  Mine cooked for 10 hours, and I was afraid of the liquid getting too low and burning)
- 1/2 C barley, dry
- 2 C chopped green beans
- 3 stalks of celery, dimed
- 5 carrots, peeled and dimed
- 1/2 a purple onion, diced
- 1/2 C frozen sweet corn (bonus if you have some that you froze yourself from this summer!)
- seasonings of your choice (I used one that was Maple Bacon, another that was Chipotle Garlic, and then just some extra garlic powder (not salt)).

Directions:
- Add all the ingredients to a large crock pot
- Stir to ensure everything is mixed well
- Cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours
- Eat and enjoy!!

Note: this heats up well.  We always have enough for 2+ meals, and the "cooked" picture is from our leftovers later in the week.