Not a Foodie / Split Pea Soup

When I was a kid, the words "split pea soup" immediately made me think, "gruel." Here in the South, every version I encountered was a thick mush of bland peas with the merest hint of ham.  The soup looked gross and tasted even worse. That is, until I developed my own version.

Now, I never make any soup by recipe and never make the same thing twice. Sure, there are common base ingredients for certain types of soups but each time I cook it up, it turns out a bit different depending on what I use for stock and what I have on hand in the kitchen to throw in the pot.

In the case of split-pea soup, though, there are two things I am very consistent about in order to avoid the pitfalls of the split pea soups of my youth: First, I treat my peas just like lentils. I cook them only slightly longer than the root vegetables in the soup and I keep them whole - no mashing or blending for this girl! Second, I spice the heck out of the soup. My spice combinations vary depending on my mood but, with a legume as bland as a pea, I err on the side of too much spice rather than not enough (no measurements…just a lot of smelling and taste-testing).

Tonight's soup featured my latest homemade stock (stock is something I feel very strongly about and I always keep a bag in my freezer to gather ingredients for it - for a detailed description of how I make my stock, check out my post on it here) and a bunch of seasonal vegetables I just got at the Farmer's Market:

Split Pea Soup

1/2 bag dried split peas
homemade stock
1 medium onion, chopped
4 small cloves garlic, minced
3 large red potatoes, chopped
5 medium carrots, chopped
1 bunch collard greens, chopped
2 large ribs celery, chopped
savory, rosemary, salt, and pepper to taste

Quick Tip from a real foodie, my friend over at Girl. Geek. Foodie.: When you're making soup, always sauté the onions, garlic, and spices in a bit of oil first. Then add your stock and other ingredients.