Yellow Split Pea Soup

Love, love, love split pea soup.   I made this without the hamock that was in the original recipe and if you want to make it vegetarian then use vegetable stock instead of the chicken stock.  I also used yellow split peas instead of green because I loved the color.  This recipe makes a large amount of soup.  I already have a container packed up for lunch at work. YUM!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 onion, sliced

3 stalks celery, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

Salt and pepper

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

8 cups chicken stock (or combination water and stock)

2 cups dried yellow split peas

Preparation:

Melt butter over medium-low heat in a large stockpot or Dutch Oven. Cook onion, celery and carrots with salt and pepper until onion is soft, about 7 to 10 minutes. Add the tumeric, stock and peas, and simmer, covered, about 1 hour.  Puree soup in a blender, food processor or directly in pot with an immersion blender  until smooth. Return to clean pot, and adjust the seasonings.  Cook over simmer for an additional 30 minutes - 1 hr until the are soft and the soup is thickened.  Serve immediately.