Today was a gloomy, chilly (for summer, at least), rainy, tea-drinking, book reading, soup making kind of day. It started off with a run (I’m up to 1.7 miles now!) and a workout, and leveled off with a nap, the reading of an entire book (A Handful of Dust) and a little craftiness you’ll see either tomorrow or the next day. Meanwhile, split pea soup happened.
Have you met my mom?
Isn’t she pretty? She’s also the master, the reigning queen, the commander-in-chief, and emperor over all things soup. She has that mystical mom-ability to create something out of nothing–from “there’s no food in the entire house!” to all the children squabbling over the leftover bowls. Especially when it comes to pea soup.
This recipe was made in the spirit of my mom’s soup making–I just used whatever I had that I thought would work. The CSA box from this week went along perfectly with the soup theme, supplying leeks, onions, and potatoes. Combined with thyme from the garden, dried peas in the cupboard, and a ham bone from the freezer–magic happened. Mom magic.
Rainy Day Split Pea Soup Printable Recipe Card
- 2 small onions (or 1 medium)
- 2 baby leeks (or 1 regular-sized leek)
- 4 medium red potatoes
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- few sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 ham bone (from a previously made ham)
- 1 C yellow dried split peas
- 1 C green dried split peas
- 3 C chicken broth
- 4 C water
- Salt and pepper to taste
I made this in the Crock Pot, because I didn’t want to have to babysit dried split peas all day. This was an excellent plan, an excellent plan indeed.
Start by dicing all the veggies and adding them to a lightly oiled Crock Pot, set on high (for 4 or 6 hours). When you use leeks, make sure to clean them extra well–they are known to be gritty in between the leaves. If they’re extra bad, you can submerge them in a bowl of water and let the dirt fall to the bottom.
Add the spices, then the ham bone. Sorry about the grisly image–kind of difficult to make it look attractive. Top off with split peas, broth, and lastly with water. I used four cups to make sure everything was covered with water, and it ended up making the soup the perfect consistency. You can start with less and add more if you need it later, of course.
Allow the soup to cook until the peas fall apart. Remove the ham bone and bay leaves, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
I’ve made pea soup several times before, but this is by far the best one. You just can’t replace that deep and amazing flavor from the ham bone by using bacon–you just can’t. Often I will add chunks of ham to the soup as well, but I didn’t have any and I must say I didn’t really miss them at all.
Fritz, who is often not a fan of split pea soup, approved heartily.
On another exciting note, I received a box full of goodies from Swanson Health Products today! They sent me a $25 coupon to use on anything from their website to review–and hey, I’m a poor college student and I love treating myself to some free food–especially if it’s not my standard fare.
So here’s what I picked:
- Pure Raw Buckwheat Honey from Y. S. Organic Bee Farm,
- Mayan Cocoa Spice Tea from Yogi Tea,
- Almond Flour from NOW Foods,
- Organic Whole-Wheat Pastry Flour from Bob’s Red Mill,
- Organic Popcorn from Arrowhead Mill, and
- Organic Kamut Spirals from Eden Foods
Quite a bit of stuff, which including shipping totaled $25.48. Not bad, if I do say so myself (especially since you can search for coupon codes to help get the shipping costs down).
Now, I have to say that Swanson sells a lot of vitamins and supplements, and I don’t personally believe in taking those unless it’s medically necessary. I have iron pills that I take when I know I’m probably anemic, and Fritz takes a multi-vitamin most days, but I generally think you should strive to get all of your nutrients, vitamins, and minerals from your diet as much as possible. Most of those “miracle pills” and “superfood supplements” just aren’t my thing.
But back to the box. First we tried the raw buckwheat honey, which was amazing. I’ve never had raw honey before (which, by the way, is antibacterial on superficial burns and such), but this jar tastes so smooth and rich. Fritz wanted some on toast right away, and I obviously had to do a little quality control test first.
Then I headed straight for the cocoa spice tea. What with all the rain and blankets and book reading, it was a perfect day to try a new tea–and it was really good. I didn’t taste that much cocoa, but the cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves was perfect–and made me crave fall sooo badly. I brewed it a little on the weak side, so I’ll try it a bit stronger tomorrow and see if I get a little more cocoa this time.
And the smell?
Heavenly.
The tea gave me a nice little message to leave you with:
16 comments
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Hannah
July 29, 2011 at 8:54 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Aww, La, that was so sweet! Thanks bunches – I have another very special picture of you that I found in another box (it had some slides in it). If I could only find a way to post it here!
Lauren Zietsman
July 29, 2011 at 9:13 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
That sounds like a picture i DONT want to see…haha
Nicole
July 29, 2011 at 9:12 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I cannot wait to try that soup! I’ve been looking for some new soup recipes!!
Mēnessmeitēns
July 29, 2011 at 9:36 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Sounds nice!
)
And Your mom are really beautiful woman!
Hello from Latvia!
Lauren Zietsman
July 29, 2011 at 9:44 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Hi right back atcha from America!
Thanks for the visit all the way from Latvia!
katshealthcorner
July 29, 2011 at 11:57 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I love the quote on your tea bag!! It is so right!
Holly
July 30, 2011 at 6:25 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
How how how do you be so lucky as to get a free box of goodies for yourself for the simple task of reviewing them?
Soup notes – awesome. I’ve had lentils and yellow split peas in my cupboard for ages and not used them – i think it might be time!
Lauren Zietsman
July 30, 2011 at 9:11 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
so easy with swanson, you can do it too–contact blogs@swansonhealth.com and tell them you are interested in doing a review
Ingrid B.
July 30, 2011 at 12:57 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Can’t wait to make this soup! Have a question for you though, if I don’t have a ham bone can I substitute it with a smoked ham hock. I see it in the meat section quite often and would love to try it. Thanks.
Lauren Zietsman
July 30, 2011 at 1:19 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
absolutely that would be amazing…that’s probably the best way to make it, ’cause then you can dice the cooked ham and add that right in.
Heidi @ Food Doodles
July 30, 2011 at 3:13 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
That split pea soup looks so good. I love split pea soup on cold days – it’s so comforting
I just got some goodies from Swanson not too long ago and I’m enjoy everything too. They have some really good stuff.
Jess
July 31, 2011 at 10:45 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I love that you used both green and yellow split peas
Barefeet In The Kitchen
July 31, 2011 at 6:29 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Love that soup recipe. I’ve made split pea soup a few times and we were less than impressed. Yours sounds great though. I even have a ham bone in the freezer. Thanks for the idea!
I stumbled onto your post from foodgawker and I am really enjoying your blog. I’m happily following you now. Have a great rest of the weekend!
Lauren Zietsman
July 31, 2011 at 6:55 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
thanks! this was definitely the best of any split pea soup I’ve had, so I hope it impresses you more than your past attempts
Debbie Callahan
September 24, 2011 at 11:57 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
This is one of my favorit mom recipies
Thanks guys
Lauren
September 24, 2011 at 4:42 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
one of mine, too
such a comfort food!
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