It’s chilly today, bright part of the day but night comes so much faster. I guess it must be late fall. Which always has me thinking, soup.
Today, I made Split Pea and Vegetable Soup with a meaty ham hock. I added ribbons of late-planted baby chard from the garden. It somehow survived the freeze. I should have snipped some dill from the garden as well. Nothing kills it. But by the time I remembered, it was dark. Maybe I’ll add it tomorrow.
I served it with fresh, hot cornbread, with scallions and corn. All good. And there are leftover and soup to freeze. For another meal.
Here’s the recipe:
1 pound green split peas, picked over and rinsed
1 smoked ham hock
10 to 12 cups water
1 medium onion, halved
1 medium carrot, peeled and halved
1 celery stalk, halved
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
Freshly ground black pepper
For later:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
about 4 large carrots, peeled, halved and sliced 1/2-inch thick, 4 cups
2 medium tender celery stalks, with leaves, sliced 1/2-inch thick, 1 cup
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large leek, halved, sliced 1/2-inch thick, rinsed, 1 heaping cup
4 cups 1-inch ribbons baby chard leaves
Kosher salt, to taste
Put split peas, ham hock, water, onion, carrot, celery, garlic and 10 cups water in a large heavy pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring often. Skim off the foam that rises to the surface. Stir in the sage, thyme, bay leaf and black pepper to taste. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until peas are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour.
Remove the onion halves, carrot, celery and garlic. Remove the ham hock, let it cool a bit, then peel off the skin and any fat. Dice the meat and add to the soup.
In a large, heavy skillet. Heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and a big pinch of salt. Cook, stirring often, until vegetables just start to soften, about 6 minutes. Add the leeks and cook, stirring often, until wilted, 2 minutes more.
Add the vegetables to the soup; return to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, and adding 1 to 2 cups more water if the soup is too thick.
Stir in the chard and season to taste with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, 15 more minutes. Taste for seasoning and serve hot. With cornbread!
Makes 8 servings