Pea soup doesn't need a hambone to have full flavor and richness.

Soupalooza published its second column in the Daily Herald  … this time we focused on split pea soup, admittedly a love-it-or-hate-it proposition. As a matter of fact, Daily Herald Editor John Lampinen wrote on his facebook page:

There are two phenomena I never will understand: 1) People who can smoke one cigarette every couple of months. And 2) people who will eat split pea soup without a gun pointed at their heads…. But if somehow you’re part of the latter phenomenon, our soup columnist has a creative suggestion for you.

 

Obviously, Soupalooza thinks pea soup is just fine, but we appreciated John’s mention of the column and we would hope that he might give peas a chance!

Split Pea Soup with Caraway

 2 cups dried split peas

7 cups of vegetable stock

1 bay leaf

3 teaspoons caraway seeds

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced

1 large onion, chopped

2 ribs celery, diced

2 carrots, sliced

2 to 3 small potatoes, scrubbed and diced

2 to 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

 In a large soup pot, combine the split peas, stock, bay leaf, caraway seeds and jalapeno. Bring to a boil, turn the heat to low and simmer, covered for 30 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, except the salt and pepper, and continue to simmer until the peas and vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper. Serves six.

 From “Dairy Hollow House Soup and Bread” by Crescent Dragonwagon