Ingredients:

  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
   5      cups          rich beef stock*
   1      tablespoon    oil
     1/2  large         leek -- (white part only),
                        -- cleaned & sliced
     1/2  large         onion -- chopped
   5                    garlic cloves -- minced
     1/2  pound         beef* -- (approximate
                        -- amount), chopped in
                        -- 1" cubes
     1/2  large         onions -- (or 1 medium),
                        -- chopped
   1      teaspoon      dried basil
   1      tablespoon    fresh parsley -- minced
   1      can           rotel tomatoes
     1/2  cup           quick-cooking barley
     1/4  cup           miso
                        cilantro -- (optional), minced

Preparation:

Rich Beef Stock* I made my stock from about 3 pounds beef bones and added the vegetables that were old in the refrigerator. I went to no trouble for this, I only broke these into pieces, old celery, old carrots, the tops of the leek that I had sliced, the leftover 1/2 of an old onion, 5 bay leaves, an old head of garlic that I cleaned and didn't chop. First I browned the bones in the oven then I added the vegetables. I covered this with water and simmered for about an hour and a half. I defatted this broth using a defatter cup and poured it into the pot that held the soup ingredients. I seasoned the stock with Maggi Seasoning Agent The Soup: Heat the oil in a large pot and add the cubes of beef to caramelize (I had an old steak in the freezer that I used). You could also use ground beef or any other leftover meat. Add the garlic, onions, 1/2 cup barley, and leeks, and saute until soft. Add the rich beef stock, the carrots,and the miso. (If you don't have miso you can substitute white wine, but the miso has a wonderful salty flavor. If you don't have wine, that's o.k., too. Maybe you can add a little lemon juice) Now add the Rotel tomatoes, the parsley and the basil. Heat gently for an hour. After half an hour check to see if there is enough barley, if not add another 1/4 cup or so. If you like cilantro you can add that at this time. (I told you this is the clean out the refrigerator soup so it is flexible, but this recipe was magnificent.) I especially loved the addition of the miso and the hotness of the Rotel tomatoes. Nothing bland about this barley soup. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. It is really good with some corn bread and a corn, carrot, sour cream, mayonnais