Michi's Lentil Soup

Michi's Lentil Soup
(This is what we're eating right now... super cheap and really yummy)
You need-
lentils (maybe 2 cups)
2-3 carrots diced
2-3 stalks celery diced
1 large potatoe diced
bay leaf
tablespoon curry powder not paste (cumin, turmeric, coriander, cayenne is what I use for curry powder- I make my own) OR Thyme, bay leaf, oregano, rosemary
Large yellow onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced large (add more if you love garlic)
one serrano pepper with seeds minced fine
olive oil
4 cups broth (I make mine, but you can buy, or use bouillon for this)
2 cups water
1/2 lemon (juice only)
Soy Sauce
Salt to taste
Black pepper

Dice your onion and garlic. Heat oil on med-high. Once the oil is hot lower to medium and saute onions and garlic until the onions begin to brown, add seranno pepper and sautee for about a minute. Add diced carrots and celery saute until just beginning to get softish- no more than 3-5 minutes. Add curry and salt near the end of your saute-this releases the flavor of the spice more fully. Add lentils, broth, bay leaf and water, bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, add lemon (DON'T OVER LEMON YOU WILL RUIN IT) and a good dash of soy sauce. If you have a very rich broth you won't need the soy sauce, but I usually end up adding at least 2 tablespoons of it to mine. Let simmer for about 40 minutes or until the lentils are soft and liquid is greatly reduced. Salt to taste. Serve over brown rice.

This makes an enormous pot of soup/stew (there's very little broth really) and it goes far if you put it over rice. You can of course (as I'm sure you will) ad hot sauce extra salt etc. To make it more delicious, and healthier, mix spinach into your rice (this will wilt the spinach on its own) and put the lentils over that. You can also put the lentils over potatoes, or eat alone.