Split Pea Soup

I’ve been under the weather with a bug for the past few days, and haven’t been able to eat much.

Today, I’m starting to come around and wanted to make some soup.  For some reason, I was craving split pea soup, and the results were tasty.

This is an easy recipe, and with the cold weather most of us are experiencing these days, it might just do the trick.  Be sure to through in some croutons just before serving.

Split Pea Soup

serves 6-8

1 lb dried green split peas

2-3 stalks celery, chopped

3 medium carrots, chopped

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 bay leaf

2 tsp dried thyme

dash smoked paprika

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

2 cups reduced sodium vegetable broth

fresh ground pepper

Rinse split peas and place in large soup pot, along with 8 cups water and chopped celery, carrots, onion, bay leaf, thyme and paprika.  Bring mixture to a boil and cook briskly for 20 minutes,  Lower heat, add salt, parsley and vegetable broth, and simmer, covered, for about 40 more minutes.  The peas should be completely soft.

Remove the bay leaf.  Taste, and add salt if needed.  Add pepper and more vegetable broth if soup seems too thick.  Puree soup in blender, in batches, or use immersion blender.  Add croutons before serving.