Slow Cooker Beef, Barley and Vegetable Stew

Perfect meal for a cold day and makes plenty so you can freeze a few batches too!

• 1 (3 pound) beef chuck roast - or any other cut of beef you'd like to use
  
• 1 cup barley
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 carrots, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cans corn
  
• 4 cups water
• 4 cubes beef bouillon cubes
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  
• salt to taste
• ground black pepper to taste

If you want you can add a few diced potatoes to this too, or some cabbage. You can also use up whatever veggies you have on hand if you need to. Just think about what you'd like in your stew!

Put everything but the barley in your slow cooker and put on low for about 8 hours. Then, stir everything up and cut the meat into bite sized pieces if you need to. Add the barley and cook an additional hour on low. Serve with some warm crusty bread and enjoy!

Makes about 8 hearty servings.