Wholesome Chunky Vegetable Soup

2 medium onions, diced

2 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut in chunks

6 stalks celery, cut in chunks

6 large carrots, cut in chunks

1 pepper (any color), seeded and cut in chunks

2 parsnips, cut into chunks

12 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1/4 cup minced fresh dill (or 3 cubes or 1 Tbsp dried dill)

1 cup pearl barley, rinsed and drained

1 1/2 cups dried red lentils, rinsed and drained

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 19-oz (540 g) can baked beans

1.  Place all cubed vegetables in the slow cooker and let cook on high for about 1 hour. Add the broth, plus more water if necessary to cover all the vegetables, along with dill, barley, red lentils, salt, and pepper.

2.  Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, until vegetables are tender. If desired, you can puree at this point. Add the baked beans about 20 minutes before serving.

Tip:  This soup reheats and freezes well. It will thicken when refrigerated overnight, so thin it with a little water when reheating.

This recipe originally appeared in Mishpacha Magazine.  Read full article, 'My Crockpot Craze', here.

Recipes by Estee Kafra, Styling by Tehila Hoberman and Amit Farber, Photorgraphy by Daniel Lailah.