Beef Shank Barley Soup recipe

I rarely post recipes, but here is an extra tasty one for Beef Shank and Barley soup.
The amounts are for two people, with enough left over for dinner the next night too.
2 lbs. beef shanks with the bone and marrow in (or leftover pot roast or other beef, I always use beef shanks since the marrow gives a unique flavor).
1/2 cup barley
2 cans of beef broth or stock (4 cups)
carrots, an onion, 4 cloves of garlic
4 big portobello mushrooms
Soak the barley in a cup of stock for 30 minutes
Slice the carrots, onion, garlic and make thick slices of the mushrooms
Brown the vegetables, then brown the meat
Put the browned meat and vegetables in the large (2 quart) pot with the barley, add the rest of the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook covered for 2 hours on the stove top.
Have extra stock available if needed.
The barley thickens the soup beautifully and 1/2 cup becomes a lot of barley when cooked.
Yum.