Paul and Linda McCartney's Split Pea Soup

Lennie's Note:

Another celebrity recipe. I do not know if you should chop up the tomatoes or not, but this sounds great. This would be vegan if you don't use the butter.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 45 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 1/2 lb split peas
• 1/4 lb orange lentils
• 1 1/2 large onions, quartered
• 4 stalks celery, including leaves, rinsed & chopped
• 2 tomatoes, peeled
• 2 leeks, white part only, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 5 cups water (about)
• 1/4 lb butter or 1/4 lb soy margarine
• crushed black peppercorns
• sea salt

Directions:

1. Place split peas, lentils, onions, celery, tomatoes and leeks in large pot and cover with water.
2. Bring to boil, lower heat and simmer about 1-1/2 hours, until split peas and lentils are soft.
3. Add butter and stir until melted.
4. Add peppercorns and sea salt to taste.

Reviews

[Dib's]

Well, I gotta say I was leary of making this as I am a fan of split pea and ham soup. This was awsome. I made it yesterday for lunch/dinner today and it did not make it past 8:00 P.M. it was that good. My daughter, who is a vegetarian thanks you, and has informed me that not only will I be making it again today, but can plan on making this on a regular basis. The only thing I changed was the tomato-I could not find fresh tomatoes that were worth buying so I used a small can of whole tomatoes with juice. I also liked the fact that I could slide some Lentils past my DH! Excellent recipe! Di

[jckamen]

This was quite delicious and easy, too. I think I'll reduce the butter next time -- don't get me wrong -- it was utterly delicious -- I just think I could get by with a little less butter and it taste just as good! Thanks!

[ccferne]

This is delicious and easy to make. Instead of the fresh tomatoes, I used a 16-oz can of 'recipe-cut' tomatoes. I can't see any point in cooking fresh tomatoes that long -- they're going to be just like canned tomatoes after all that time. I used a scant 1/4 CUP of canola margerine rather than the 1/4 LB of butter, and it was certainly rich enough. Butter IS good with split-pea soup, tho. A person who's not worried about cholesterol might want to add a spoonful to a serving made with minimal margerine.