Vegetarian Split Pea Soup

BelleTerre's Note:

This is my vegetarian version of split pea soup without the ham bone. It goes nicely with fresh-baked bread, which is also included in my recipes. Substitute 1 cup of barley for the rice, if you like :)

• Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 2 cups split peas , rinsed and sorted
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 celery ribs , sliced
• 1 onion , diced
• 2 carrots , sliced
• 1 turnip , peel and dice (optional)
• 1 medium potato , peel and dice
• 1 cup brown rice , uncooked
• 8 ounces spinach , chopped
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 4 cups water (or more as needed)
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• salt and pepper , to taste

Directions:

1. In a large soup pot, saute onion and celery in oil until tender. Add carrots, turnip, and potato. Saute about 5 more minutes. Add water, broth, peas, rice, and spinach.
2. Simmer until peas are tender (this will take about 2-4 hours), stirring every so often to avoid scorching. Add water or broth as needed to keep soup from becoming too thick. Add parsley, salt, and pepper in the last 30 minutes.
3. Warning: If you do not add water during the cooking process, the soup will be very thick and the split peas may not soften!

Reviews

[OliveLover]

We like food with flavor and use a lot of spices, herbs and hot pepper in our cooking. I agree that this is a thick, hearty, and very heart healthy meal. However, when we tasted it, the first word was "bland." There was no "fresh, hearty flavor." After trying a few additions, including granulated garlic, fish sauce, and sherry vinegar, we each ate about half a cup and decided, "Not bad." I won't be making this again.

[Chef #1372664]

This smelled awful as it was cooking, and I am a definite veggie lover. I finally realized that it was the smell of overcooked peas that I really disliked. The final result was thick and tasty, though. I think that if I make it again, I will save the spinach (I used fresh) as a late addition, and cook it just until it has wilted to add a bit of fresh flavor.

[Grace4Gayle]

This had an amazing flavor for such simple ingredients. Don't breeze past this recipe without trying it. I did use oat groats instead of rice (I have a ton to use up) and even after cooking it on low for 9 1/2 hours my split peas still were firm. But the flavor was so good that it just didn't matter. It makes a lot so I'm going to freeze it in individual portions for a quick lunch.