Roughly chop the carrots, celery, onion and garlic. Place them in a food processor and pulse until finely minced. If you don't have a food processor, just try to chop them up as finely as you can.

Heat the oil in a pot over medium-low heat. Add the minced vegetables and thyme. Gently fry, stirring from time to time, until the vegetables are very soft - about 15 minutes. The idea is for the vegetables to flavor the soup and be almost undetectable.

Add the beans and vegetable stock and raise to heat to bring it to a boil. Add the barley and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover the pot with a lid. Cook until the barley is tender - 20 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the almond butter in a bowl and add a ladle of the hot soup broth. Stir to dissolve the almond butter.

When the barley is cooked, remove the pot from the heat and add the almond butter, lemon zest, salt and lemon juice.

This is a chunky soup. If you prefer a thinner consistency, add a ladle of water or additional stock.