Cold Snap

We are in for a cold snap for the next four days. Tonight we are supposed to be in the negatives and tomorrow the high will be 10 degrees (if we are lucky)! So I decided to make some Pea Soup to enjoy over the next few days. Whenever I make Pea Soup I think of my Pepere who used to make this soup when I was a child. Unfortunately I never got his recipe before he died, so I usually make the recipe off a local bean company's bag. Tonight I couldn't find the recipe I usually use, so I combined a couple recipes to make this delicious soup!

Green Split Pea Soup with Ham

1 lb dry Green split peas
1 Chicken Bouillon Cube
6 cups water
Ham Bone or 1/4 lb smoked ham, diced
1 cup chopped celery
1 medium carrot, diced
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Sort and rinse peas. In a 6 to 8 quart pot, add peas, bouillon cube and water. Bring to boiling; simmer 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover and let stand 1 hour. Add ham bone, celery, carrot, onion, garlic, bay leaf and thyme; heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until peas are soft. Remove bone; cut off meat and dice. If desired, remove bay leaf then put vegetable mixture through food mill, blender** or sieve. Return meat to soup; season to taste with salt and pepper.

Note: I usually use a hand held immersion blender.