You have no idea how hard I’ve looked for synonyms for split pea that start with V. I LOVE alliteration, but it looks like I’ll only squeeze three V’s into the name of this dish.
Awhile back Laura posted a recipe for our mom’s perfect split pea soup. Yesterday I was tinkering with it, trying to make it vegetarian-friendly for all my veggie friends. I must confess that I still prefer my pea soup with big fat chunks of polish sausage or ham floating in it, but this turned out to be very tasty. The fact that it was vegetarian didn’t even come up as my carnivore sons wolfed it down.
Vegetarian Split Pea Soup
- 2 large onions
- 2 T. minced garlic
- 1 large bunch of celery, washed and chopped
- 2 pounds carrots, cut into “wheels”
- 2 pound split peas
- 1 t. oregano
- 1 t. basil
- 2 t. salt
- 2/3 c. ground flax seed
In an 8 quart stock pot, bring water and two pounds of split peas to a vigorous rolling boil. Cook for 30 minutes. Pour peas into colander and rinse. Place back into stock pot and fill with water. Bring back up to a boil.
While the peas are cooking, saute the onions, garlic, basil and oregano in 1 T. of olive oil until they’re browned and starting to carmelize. At this point, stir in the chopped celery (better use a nice big skillet for this) and cook for a couple of minutes to crank up the flavors just a bit. Put all these veggies and seasonings into the stockpot with the peas.
Add the carrot wheels and flax seed and simmer for a couple of hours, stirring occasionally. You want the peas to be very soft and mushy. The carrots should be thoroughly cooked.
At this point, you can add the salt and any other seasonings that you like. We often add Lawry’s seasoning salt for flavor. I’ve learned over the years that salting the soup at the table means less salt overall for everyone than if I try to salt the soup enough on the stove.
Serve with crusty french bread.
Barb
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