Delicious and hearty split pea soup

We have had some unseasonably warm weather lately. When the temperature dropped a bit this weekend, I sound myself craving warm, comforting food. Split pea soup, made with ham and garnished with spring onions, is perfect for this time of year. It’s delicious and wholly satisfying. This post was originally published some time ago, but I’ve made some updates to my methods and wanted to share them with you today. I hope you’ll give this soup a try-  It is so easy to make, and fits well into a day when you plan to be “around the house” but don’t want to or cannot spend your entire day actively cooking!

The recipe is easily broken into several small steps, completed at your convenience throughout the day. The kitchen timer on your range and/or phone will come in handy here! After the ingredients list, I’ll detail how this process might look and throw some target completion times in there for you. I hope you will find it helpful!

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This recipe has been adapted from the one found in American Classics: More Than 300 Exhaustively Tested Recipes For America’s Favorite Dishes

Ingredients:

2-2.5 lbs ham (This is a perfect use for leftover Easter ham, so think ahead!)

Ham bone, if available

3-4 bay leaves

2.5 cups green split peas

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon grapeseed oil, or other cooking oil of your choice

2 cups chopped onions

3 carrots, chopped

2 cups chopped celery

1 Tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Pinch of sugar

¾ peeled, diced potatoes (3-4 medium sized potatoes)

8:30 pm prior day: Peel and chop the potatoes, carrots, celery and onions. I usually have frozen, chopped onions and celery on hand in the freezer from an annual bulk purchase. This allows me to buy organic produce at low prices. It also eliminates waste and saves me a lot of time and energy. In any case, I usually chop whatever vegetables the next day’s meal requires in advance, and put everything in storage containers in the refrigerator. In total, this should take about 15 minutes.

2 pm day of meal: A few hours before you plan to serve the meal, pour the split peas, thyme, bay leaves, 12 cups (3 quarts) water, and ham bone (if available) into a stockpot. Weigh the ham meat (do not chop into bite-sized pieces first) and put that in the pot as well.

After the water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and set the timer for 2.5 hours. This takes about ten active minutes altogether.

3:30 pm day of meal: When the timer has about an hour or so remaining, you’re ready for the next step. Place the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, sugar, butter, and oil into a frying pan and let it caramelize at a low temperature for about 45 minutes , stirring only occasionally. Total active minutes: about five.

4:30 pm day of meal: After the vegetables are finished, remove everything (soup and caramelized vegetables) from the heat. Use a slotted spoon to remove the ham bone and the meat from the broth. Total active minutes: less than five.

5:00 pm day of meal: When the ham was cool enough to handle, shred it with your fingers and place back into the broth, discarding the ham bone and any gristly pieces. The vegetables, potatoes, and split peas should also be added now. Set the timer for 25 minutes. This step should take about ten minutes.

5:35 pm day of meal: Timer should be going off. Check your soup. If your peas haven’t nearly dissolved at this point, continue cooking a few more minutes until they have. Serve with leftover bread, balsamic vinegar, chopped spring onions or red onions, and fresh ground pepper.

Some tips for making meal prep work for your life:

• If you aren’t going to be semi-available during the afternoon, be creative. This soup reheats like a dream. You could begin the whole process at 6 pm one evening, and cook everything while you do your regular evening routine. Then, reheat the soup the next day. Or, make it all in the morning for reheating later.
• If you don’t have time to make the ham broth, consider using a water/chicken stock blend instead.
• One of my favorite things to do is to freeze quart-size portions for thawing and heating later. If you have a lot of leftover ham, consider making a double recipe and freezing most of it.

• Every five-six months I will roast a large ham on Sunday and, on Monday night, turn the leftovers into both freezer omelettes and spit pea soup on a Monday. There really are few things more wonderful than having home-cooked food in the freezer. Ok, maybe the sweet snuggles of a new baby…. but honestly, even those can be enhanced by not having to cook something. 🙂

I’d love your feedback! Have you ever tried split pea soup? Do you have a favorite make-ahead meal?