Barley Soup

INSTRUCTIONS

• 1
  Rinse the barley in a colander and then let it soak in cold water for half an hour. Soak the mushrooms in 100-150 ml of cold water for the same amount of time.
• 2
  Peel the carrots and cut them into slices as thick as a charging cable (I think that's a better comparison than a blade of grass). Cut the thick parts of the carrots in half beforehand. Peel the onion and garlic, chop the onion coarsely, and slice the garlic into thin slices.
• 3
  Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the chopped carrots, all the salt, and sauté the carrots for at least a minute or two without letting them burn. This will enhance their flavor. Add the onion to the sautéed carrots and stir for another minute, then add the garlic and Provençal herbs for the last 30 seconds. Finish sautéing by adding the broth.
• 4
  Drain the soaked barley and add it to the pot. Remove the mushrooms from the water and add them to the pot as well. Finally, carefully pour in the water in which the mushrooms were soaked, without pouring any sediment from the bottom of the bowl into the pot.
• 5
  Bring to a boil and add salt as needed, depending on the taste of the broth. Add the bay leaf to the emerging soup and simmer gently, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
• 6
  Stir in the crushed tomatoes, cover with a lid this time, and let it simmer slowly for another 25 minutes. Finally, add salt again. Garnish with fresh parsley on the plate.