FAT-FREE SPLIT PEAS SOUP

The inspiration for this soup is from a Ina Garten?s show. She cooked the soup in a big cast iron pot and this soup was so appetizing. In the original recipe, Ina slow-cooked half of the split peas and then added the seasonings and the other half of the peas so that the texture of the soup contained both puréed and whole peas. Lazy-me put all the ingredients for the soup in a pressure cooker and then blended everything but this soup did taste great. I loved the creaminess of this soup. I also did not add any oil for the soup since I was trying to make this soup fat free. If needed, the onions can be sautéed in oil and then cooked along with the peas. If you love creamy soups like I do, then this soup is for you.

INGREDIENTS:

1. Split peas, soaked overnight, 1 cup.

2. Onion, medium-size, 1.

3. Garlic, 2 pods.

4. Tomato sauce or canned tomatoes, 1 small can.

5. Mixture of dry herbs like mint, basil, and oregano, 1 tablespoon. (Oregano can be overpowering sometimes, add a pinch first and increase accordingly).

6. Any soup seasoning mixture or Italian seasoning mixture, ½ table.

7. Salt and pepper according to taste.

PREPARATION:

Wash the soak split peas well. Dice the onion into large pieces and peel the garlic. Take a pressure cooker or pressure pan and add the split peas, chopped onions, garlic pods, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, dry herbs, and seasoning mixture along with 3-4 cups of water or broth. Cook the contents for up to 3 whistles. Let the steam out and open the pressure cooker. Blend the contents into a smooth purée, check for salt and pepper taste, and transfer the soup into a serving bowl. Add grated cheese, croutons, or chopped basil leaves and serve the soup hot with garlic bread or crackers.

Gita's Kitchen