Lentil-Barley Soup

Good hearty soup. And it makes the house smell fantastic. Though the amount of dill the recipe calls for gives it a bit of a "grassy" flavor, especially when it's fresh. The recipe also only makes a pretty small amount of soup, so I'm thinking next time I'll double all of the rest of the ingredients and keep the original recipe's amount of dill in order to tone down the "grassiness".

Lentil-Barley Soup
Courtesy of Cooking Light

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 cup sliced leek
3 cups organic vegetable broth
1 cup water
3/4 cup beer
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped parsnip
1/4 cup chopped celery leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
1/4 cup uncooked pearl barley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup dried lentils
1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add leek to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add broth, 1 cup water, and beer; bring to a boil. Add chopped carrot and next 8 ingredients (through bay leaves); return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in lentils; cover and cook 30 minutes. Discard bay leaves.

Place 1 1/2 cups broth mixture in a blender. Remove the center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Return pureed mixture to pan, and stir in salt. Return mixture to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally.