Split Pea Soup!

First up, I did a recipe page!  I was tired of blogger not letting me get to my older recipes, so I made a page and the link at the bottom is ALL RECIPES!  We will see if that helps me out.  It was easier (for now) than moving my site.  I am already on it this morning...I have my gluten free angel food cake in the oven to take to a friends house!  I will also be making 7 minute icing to go with it!  They had a baby a couple of months ago and I can't wait to get me some baby lovin' today!

Well, we ventured out for a little while yesterday.  We all had a few things we needed.  Me, I needed Lentil Chips and Falafel Chips that I did not get because they weren't at the store they were supposed to be at.  The illustrator needed gluten free oats and some fresh air.  The boys...well, they had to suffer with our needs! It was so hot!  We all needed to grab some cold beverages from the natural food store to quench out thirst!

I had a Honey Suckle White Tea!  So refreshing!  It tasted a little like cantaloupe. Which I had missed my snack so it was a good substitute!

The illustrator and Max enjoyed cream soda.  This tasted like marshmallows to me!  Tasty, but really sweet!

Jay got an apple juice.  He does not do soda at all, actually, none of us drink it, but this was a treat (the cream soda, not the apple juice)!  Everything in moderation, right?!

Now, let me give you some hot soup on a hot day!  Truth be told, I made this a week ago when it was rainy and overcast.  No, this is not baby food, although I would agree that it looks like it.  This was my first taste of split pea soup, so I can't guarantee that it is a traditional recipe by any means.  To be totally honest, I was kind of afraid to make this.  For the record, I do not like peas.  It's a childhood thing that has more to do with canned peas, but all peas kinda get the shaft due to the trauma.  So, with lots of prodding from the illustrator to just do it...I decided to use my lentil stew as the base.

So, I totally fell in love with this!  Why did no one tell me this would be so good?  Now, I don't do pureed soups unless we are talking tomato and even still, I put chunks of tomato in it.  So, I left this one chunky style.  I loved the contrast in textures!  I let it cook a little longer than I would other soups so that I wouldn't have to puree anything and it would be more of a thick stew.  I am already craving it!  We ate the whole pot in 1 1/2 days.  Even the kid next door asked for seconds! That should mean something!

Split Pea Soup
(makes 11 cups)

16 oz. bag split peas (picked and rinsed)
2 cups diced onions
3 cloves garlic (peeled and diced)
3 cups carrots (peeled and sliced)
3 cups potatoes (peeled and diced)
8 cups Not Chicken Broth
fresh ground pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup water

In a large pot, cook the onions and garlic in a little bit of water until translucent.  Place everything through the pepper in the pot, cover and bring to a boil.  Simmer 30-45 minutes stirring occasionally.  If you want it firmer, go with 30.  I cooked it 45 since "others" here like there beans cooked to mush.  Add the salt and the other cup of water if you want more liquid.

A little aside on the veggies and baby food.  My mom always told me that as a baby, when she would feed me baby food (both the veggies and the meet) she swears that I could separate it out and I would spit the meat out and eat the veggies.  Up until a few years ago, my grandmother still had the stained wallpaper from my picky eating in her kitchen.

Do you have a food that you didn't think you would like, but when you tried it you discovered that you loved it?