Sausage, Wild Rice, & Barley Soup with Beer Bread

So my cupboards get pretty bare by the end of the month, and I'm always eager to use healthy ingredients for a meal. I was staring at the items I had left, perusing the food blogs, and contemplating what I could throw together when I realized that had the the makings for a soup and hearty bread--a perfect meal for an early fall day!!


Beer Bread
3 c flour
1/2 c sugar
1T baking powder (I accidentally used soda so we'll see how this tastes...)
1 - 12 oz beer

Mix all ingredients together and bake in a loaf pan for 50 minutes at 350 degrees.

Sausage, Wild Rice, & Barley Soup
1 - 2.75oz box KC's Best instant wild rice
3/4 c quick barley
Fresh or canned mushrooms
1-1.5 lb pork sausage
2T butter
2t instant chicken bouillon
1 can cream mushroom soup
Milk to thin

Boil rice and barley for 7 minutes. Drain. Add 2C water, bouillon, and butter. Simmer. Brown sausage. Add sausage to rice/barley. Mix in soup and milk to reach desired consistency. Simmer until ready to eat.

**I LOVE Lawry's new roasted garlic salt with oregano and basil. It is basically all I use now and gives a real sophisticated taste to "regular" dishes. It's what I used to season the sausage and soup.

**Thoughts and Suggestions:
You could make the soup with chicken, turkey, or even go meatless.
Leave the soup thick and serve it over bread or biscuits, too!! Thin it out and serve with crackers...
Use sour cream in place of milk for an extra creamy texture without making it runny...
Add in asparagus or puréed cauliflower or butternut squash.
Make a double batch and freeze the leftovers for a later date.

Good luck and happy cooking!