Lentil Zucchini Mushroom Soup

I threw this together the other day when I made split pea soup for my husband.  He loves plain split peas, water and salt.  That's it.  The kids don't like it, so I took my chance to make a soup that James wouldn't like but I would!

I don't measure much when cooking, so this is more of a loose guide to a soup rather than a recipe.

Put 2 or 3 tsps olive oil into a large pot.

Sauteed one diced onion and 3 med garlic cloves.

Add 3 small zucchini, diced. Could use more.

Throw in 4 large mushrooms, sliced (more--like 12--would be even better!)

Rinse 1- 2 cups french lentils, add to pot.  I love these kind, the green lentils.  They don't have them in the regular grocery store.  You can use any kind in this soup, but the green ones hold their shape and don't disintegrate like the brown do.

Add a bunch of water or broth.  (I threw in a veggie bouillon cube)

Let boil for a while until the lentils are getting soft, then throw in two cans diced tomatoes. 

When it's close to being done, salt and pepper if desired.  By waiting to salt a dish towards the end you use less since it all doesn't get absorbed deep into the veggies.

Then, I added frozen corn to each bowl of soup to cool it down.  It was SO GOOD with the corn just thawed, I highly recommend the flavor of the fresh corn with the rest of the soup instead of just cooking it all together.

That's it!  It made a huge stockpot full.  Vary the veggie amounts to what you prefer.

Edited to add:  I think I added some oregano, basil and thyme to this.  Thyme is good with lentils!  Add whatever herbs you like that sound tasty.