At our house cooler weather brings the desire to have a big pot of soup warming on the stove. I simply love the welcoming aroma that fills the house. This is our favorite Split Pea Soup recipe.
2 – 3 tablespoons olive oil.
1 onion sliced and quartered
3 -4 carrots sliced and quartered
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 package split peas
1 ham shank
6 cups chicken broth
3 whole bay leaves
3 – 4 potatoes sliced and quartered
1 cup heavy cream (or water)
In a large dutch oven, heat 2 – 3 tablespoons olive oil. Add 1 onion sliced and quartered, 3 -4 carrots sliced and quartered, and 3 cloves chopped garlic . Saute stirring occasionally until onions begin to turn translucent. About 5 minutes.
Add the package of split peas,
the 3 bay leaves and the ham shank. Most Split Peas Soup is made with ham hocks but I use a shank that the butcher has cut into three pieces instead. It’s all a matter of preference.
Add the 6 cups of chicken broth, salt and pepper to taste and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes.
Remove ham shanks allowing them to cool enough so that you can remove the meat.
Add the 3 – 4 sliced and quartered potatoes. Simmer for an additional 40 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.
Ladle half of the soup into a blender/food processor and puree along with 1 cup of heavy cream. You can also use water. The cream will make the soup thicker and creamer but it also takes away from the green coloring as you can see in our end photo. Use a potato masher to mash the soup in the pan leaving bits and chunks of carrots and potatoes. Mix the puree back in with the mashed soup in the dutch oven.
Add the ham, season to taste and simmer 10 minutes or so.
Enjoy!!
David Fultner says
This sounds really tasty. I love soups. and stews.