Chicken Barley Soup

Now that there's a baby in the house, I have to be more strategic when it comes to meal planning. She's 12 months old but not quite eating what we're eating. I usually have to make her food separately from our dinner. I bought a whole fryer yesterday since it was on sale. I saved the dark meat for another meal and used the breast meat for her. Like many one year-olds, she has now become a very picky eater. Mealtimes can sometimes be tricky trying to figure out what she would eat.

I ended up making chicken barley soup for her tonight. It was a simple one-pot meal, perfect for a baby who likes the soft texture. She happily slurped the soup down tonight. What a relief!



Chicken Barley Soup

1 skinless split chicken breast
5 cups water
1 carrot, diced
3 stalks of celery, diced
1 cup uncooked pearled barley

1. Poach the split breast in 5 cups of water. Boil for 5 minutes, then cover and let the chicken rest for 30 minutes. Remove the chicken, place in container with a loose cover on until cooler to handle. This will also help retain its moisture. Remove chicken breast from bone. Coarsely chop into bite-size.

2. Using the poaching liquid, boil carrots, celery, and barley for 2 minutes. Simmer on low heat for 40 minutes or until barley is soft.

3. Add chopped chicken breasts to soup. Serve! (I usually don't add salt to food for my baby.

For the leftover, I usually divide into smaller portions and freeze. It makes things easier when I don't have time to make her meals.