Middle Eastern Lentil Soup (Crock-pot Recipe)

Life is so busy in the evenings as I drive the kids where they need to be for their sports, scouts and play dates that I rely on my crockpot a lot.  This is a wonderful soup with a tangy flavor that my kids all like as well:

• 1 1/2 -2 cups dry lentils — soaked in water for 1 1/2 hours, then rinsed prior to adding to the crockpot
• 8 – 8 1/2 cups of water
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 ribs of celery chopped
• 3 carrots chopped
• 2 garlic cloves chopped (or 3/4 tsp garlic powder)
• 3 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 2/3 teaspoon fish sauce
• juice of 1 lemon or lime (I used 1 1/2 Tablespoons of lemon juice)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 2 Tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoons of salt
• 2 large Tablespoons of lemon grass paste (it comes in a tube in the vegetable area)
• 1 teaspoon basic
• 1 teaspoon oregano

Cook on low for 7 or 8 hours or so.