This is one of my favorite soups.
I make a big batch every year after Easter when I have cooked a whole ham and have a ham bone available. I can it so we have it available for fast dinners all winter, but freezing it would work well too if you don't have a pressure canner.
This recipe makes about ten quarts of soup.
ingredients
- a meaty whole ham bone
- 2 lbs of yellow split peas (about 5 cups)
- 2 medium onions (diced)
- 6 medium carrots (diced)
- 3 stalks of celery (diced)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 cup dried parsley
- 2 tsp dried savory
- 1/2 tsp black pepper (freshly-ground)
basic method
- In a stock pot, cover the whole ham bone with about 4 quarts of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer about 4 hours. Let cool before proceeding.
- Remove ham bone and shred ham meat that remains. Freeze half the meat and broth for another use, leaving half in stock pot.
- Add split peas to stock pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about one hour.
- Add onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves, parslet, savory and pepper to stockpot and simmer for an additional half hour (if canning) or two hours (if freezing).
- Discard bay leaves.
to can
- Fill canner with hot water and bring to a boil.
- Clean and ready jars: you will need approximately 10 quarts or 20 pints. Place jars in canner to get hot.
- Ladle hot soup into hot jars, then adjust two-piece lids.
- Place jars in canner and bring to 11 lbs pressure (at sea level, adjust for higher altitudes). Process pints for 70 minutes; quarts for 90 minutes.
- After pressure drops to zero, remove jars to allow to cool.
- Remove rings, check seals, label and store.
Alternatively, you can simply freeze the soup in containers.
