Easy Peasy Split Pea Soup
Why is it that every time you serve baked ham at a gathering, there is always a mountain of it leftover? Everyone enjoys it, but it never seems to disappear. I’m actually ok with that. Whenever there is leftover ham, I freeze the slices for future recipes. Especially split pea soup. That is always my first thought. It’s as easy as can be! I don’t too much seasoning. Simple is best. The ham gets crisped up before adding the veggies, plus the ham tends to be salty on its own. Because of this, I usually don’t salt the soup until the end.
I will say, that a little hot pepper oil on to or even a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil on top before serving definitely elevates this soup!
On a cold fall or winter evening, it really makes you feel cozy. Curl up with a bowl of this and everything is ok in the world- at least until the soup is gone! Serve it up with some crusty Italian bread and that’s that! Easy peasy- see what I did there…
Easy Peasy Split Pea Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound green split peas
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic chopped fine
- 1 tablespoo fresh parsley chopped fine
- 6 ounces cooked ham cubed
- 1 quart chicken broth or stock
- 2 cups water
- 2 carrots diced
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 small tomatoes seeded and chopped
- 1 bay leaf optional
- 1 Parmesan cheese rind optional
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Chop the onion, tomatoes, and carrots. Set aside.
- In a large pot saute the garlic and parsley in 3 tablespoons of olive oil.
- Add the cubed ham and saute until brown and crisp.
- Add the vegetables.
- Cook until the vegetables are soft. About 5 minutes.
- In the meantime, rinse and sort the spilt peas.
- Add the split peas to the pot.
- Add the chicken broth and the water. Add the bay leaf and Parmesan rind, if using.
- Cook until the split peas are tender, about 30-40 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.
