Greek Lentil Soup

It's cleanse day number 4 and its going great! Yesterday I had a brief period of sweets and carbs craving but once those died down I was ok. The cleanse hasn't been as hard as it was last time, I don't feel as deprived from food and have actually enjoyed my meals. Last night we had company over, thankfully they are some of our crunchy friends and didn't mind cleanse friendly dinners. I wanted to make a lentil something because I am HUGE fan of lentils and cannot get enough of them. I actually crave lentils. Jeremy, not so much. So it's saying alot when we finished dinner last night he said "that was really good, I wouldn't mind that in our meal rotation!" It was by far the best lentil recipe I have ever made! I changed a few things so here is my version of Greek lentil soup. Enjoy!

2 cups brown lentils (washed)
1 large carrot
1 brown onion
1 large soft tomato or can of diced tomatoes
water to cover lentils (I used chicken broth with a little water)
1/2 cup olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
chili powder
diced chicken (optional)

Put washed lentils and chicken broth or water in larger pot to simmer while chopping vegetables. Chop onion, carrot, celery & tomatoes into small pieces (around the same size as the lentils or a bit bigger). Add veggies, bay leaf, olive oil, salt & pepper & chili powder

Add enough water or broth to cover lentils and bring to boil. Cover pot and simmer gently on med-low heat for around 40 min (stirring occasionally). Take lid off and simmer for another 5-10 minutes until soup thickens. Serve alone or over brown rice.