#SoupSwappers ~ Split Pea Soup

Welcome to the March 2020 Soup Saturday Swappers event led by Wendy of A Day in the Life on Farm! Are you interested in joining this great group of Soup Swappers? Request to join our Facebook group here. April of Veggies First Then Dessert invited us to feature fresh spring greens in our soups (artichokes, asparagus, herbs, leeks, peas, etc.)!

Today I opted to make a split pea soup - I have never made split pea before, but I love this flavor profile! I've made variations of ham and bean soups, but with spring greens being our theme I thought it was a great time to pull this one out. I realize my peas came in a dried format - but that just means you can enjoy this one anytime! It also uses a beautiful bunch of fresh green celery. It's really jam packed full of tasty veggies, and is a hearty stick to your ribs meal. We enjoyed this with the last of the Irish Soda Bread I had made to go with our St. Patrick's Day meal! 

Come see all our Spring Green Soups being shared today:

• Carrot and Fennel Soup with Homemade Stock by Faith, Hope, Love & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplices
• One Pot Veggie Soupma by Sneha's Recipe
• Roasted Fennel and Spring Green Soup by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Sardinian Herb Soup by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Split Pea Soup by Making Miracles
• Spring Greens Soup with Mushrooms by Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Wilted Spring Greens Soup by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Split Pea Soup from Cooking Classy

Ingredients
1 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3-4 stalks celery, diced
1 TBS minced garlic (jarred)
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
1 (16-oz) bag dried split peas, picked over and rinsed
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme
Salt and ground black pepper
1 1/2 lb meaty ham bone
3-4 medium/large carrots, diced

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large soup pot, over medium to medium high heat. Saute the onion and celery for about 5 minutes, until they are starting to brown. Add in the garlic and saute for another minute.
2. Pour in the broth and water, followed by the split peas, bay leaves, and thyme. Season very lightly with salt and pepper (you can adjust seasoning after it simmers with the ham, some ham will be saltier than others).
3. Nestle the bone down into the ingredients (as close to "covered" in liquid as possible).
4. Cover and bring soup to a low simmer, simmer for 60 minutes.
5. Pull the ham bone out and set on a cutting board to cool, add the carrots in. Give the ham 10 minutes to cool before pulling all the meat off, chopping and adding back to the soup. (I did not have much meat on my ham bone, so I threw about a cup of diced ham in). Cook another 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender. Turn off heat, adjust seasonings, and serve. It will thicken as it stands.
6. If the soup is too thick, thin with a little broth during cooking. Make sure it doesn't stick - stir occasionally.