Barley and Shitake Mushroom Soup

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

• 1 Cup Barley
• 2 Handfuls dry Shitake Mushrooms
• 6 Cups Water
• 5 Large Cloves Garlic
• 1 Stick Celery
• 1/4 cup Sherry
• 1/4 cup low sodium Soy Sauce

Directions:

Serves 6.

Bring 5 cups water to a boil. Add Dry Mushroom. Let soak an hour. While you let the mushrooms soak, slice the celery into 1/4 inch pieces. In a small pot, boil 1 cup water. Add the peeled garlic cloves and chopped celery and boil until tender, around 15 minutes. Pour the garlic, celery, and boil water into a blender. Blend until smooth After the mushrooms are done soaking, remove from the water, squeezing out the excess liquid. KEEP THE SOAK WATER. Bring the soak water to a boil and add 1 cup barley. Dice the Shitake mushrooms. Add mushrooms, blended celery/garlic liquid, 1/4 cup sherry, and 1/4 cup soy sauce to the pot with the barley. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Simmer covered until the barley is tender, around an hour and a half. You may need to add more liquid as the barley will continue to soak it up.

Serve hot with freshly ground black pepper to taste.