A vegan twist on a traditional soup
An old friend of mine used to make Split Pea Soup for New Year's Day...I think it was the Yankee equivalent of Hoppin' John.
He stood over his giant, steaming pot of green for hours on New Year's Eve. Stirring, testing, spicing, testing, crushing, testing...it was a labor of love for sure. At the center of this recipe, however, was a pound of salt pork.
He would cook that chunk of fat down slowly before anything else could begin. It took hours to draw all the flavor and fat out of that hunk. Even before I became a vegetarian, I thought that was just way too much work. I couldn't be bothered.
So, I worked up my own version of Jerry's New Years Soup.
It's a creamy and a little spicy. It tastes great without even a hint of yucky pig parts. For those who really like the salt pork taste (some people do, ya know), you can add a couple of drops of Worcestershire Sauce and, perhaps, an extra half teaspoon of salt.
So, we've made what sounds like it would be a vegetarian or vegan treat into a real vegan soup and it's ready to go in time for dinner.
Vegan Split Pea Soup
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 large onions, chopped1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of dried split green peas, picked over and rinsed
5 cups of water
a few pinches of smoked paprika, cayenne pepper and/or cajun spices
- Add the olive oil to a big pot over medim-high heat. Stir in the onions and salt and cook for a minute or two - until the onions are softened.
- Add the split peas and the water to the pot and bring it all to a boil. Turn it all down and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the peas are cooked through.
- Ladle half of the soup into a blender and puree that part of the soup.
- Stir the chunky soup back into the puree.
- If you need to thin the soup out with more water (or stock) do so a bit at a time.
- Ladle into bowls or cups, and serve each drizzled with olive oil and topped with a good pinch of spices. Add some lemon zest for a summery flavor.
Vegan.
