lentil mushroom barley soup

I made this up today and it was very good. No need to follow this exactly, as it's hard to ruin lentils.

Ingredients:

2 cups dry lentils (I like to mix them up, used 1 cup brown, 1 cup green)

8-16 oz shitake mushrooms (I didn't weight them. Note: I chose shitake because Dr. Fuhrman says they are healthier than button, crimini, and portobello)

1/2 cup hulled or hulless barley

2 carrots, chopped

an onion or leek, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup celery juice

1 cup carrot juice

2-3 cups water (add as needed as soup thickens)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp thyme

a little cayenne or chipotle pepper/powder to taste

Throw everything in a pot and cook for an hour or until lentils and veggies are tender. Add water as needed if soup gets too thick. The celery and carrot juice adds just enough flavor to keep you from thinking it needs salt or heavy spices.