Beef is Good; Barley is Good; Beef-Barley SOUP is GREAT

I would post a photo but, you know, I just ate it all up!

Fighting off being sick, unsuccessfully for the most part, it's gotten to the point of unleashing a couple of the deadlier weapons in my arsenal. 

Thankfully I've got these few days off. I've been sleeping and resting and downing gallons of juice. It helps but I'm still not well.

At last I remembered that I remembered to get barley when I was at the store the other day, and beef while I was at it.

Ha!

If you're expecting a fancy schmancy recipe, too bad.

Here's what you do:

Cut the beef up.
Fill a pan or microwave container with a lot of water.
Put the beef in the water.
Add salt and pepper if you want, which I did.
Cook until the beef is tender.
Crank up the heat so the water is boiling.
Throw a couple of handfuls of barley in.
Turn the heat back down just in case, being sick and all, you're liable to forget to keep an eye on it.
When the barley's done, eat it all up and then chug the broth.

Absolutely.

I feel better already and that's a good thing because I have to go out and bring in the rest of the wood that's been outside all winter buried under snow and ice.

Yep. I have to do that because there's supposed to be a blizzard on its way and I might want my wood stove fired up.

Not that there's any chance of freezing to death, not at this stage of the year (unless you're stranded outside and fall in the water and get caught there by the blizzard or some such) but because there's a comfort in having a fire going when it's snowing outside.

I have another hunk of beef in my refrigerator, and more barley.

I might just get another batch of soup started - wouldn't it be perfect for a blizzard day?

Darned tootin'. A fire in my wood stove, beef-barley soup, fruit and vegetable juice, Duke at my feet, and the Mamm Books. I can live with that.