CrockPot Tuesday: February 1st

Have I ever told you about my green kitchen notebook? 


No, huh?


Okay, so awhile back I got the brilliant idea to use one of my old notebooks for a "kitchen organizer". (Remember my inner nerd that loves organizing and notebooks and such.) It came to me after finding recipes written on loose-leaf notebook paper here and there and in random places. So I went to Target and got some fun colored dividers with pockets and set out organizing. I had forgotten this phase I went through where I would check out a ton of cookbooks from the library, scour the pages and write down recipes that appealed to me. I went through so many books and wrote down countless recipes during that phase, that it was more than enough to fill this notebook. 


   I bring this up because I wanted some new inspiration for CrockPot Tuesdays. The first recipe staring up at me when I flipped to the 'Recipes' section of my green kitchen notebook was one for a Crock Pot Pea Soup. It is from a cookbook that helps the chef cook what is in season, thereby cutting down some food costs. The recipe itself was written down for my hubby. Nate loves Split Pea Soup and in all the time we have been together, I have never made it! This is crazy because of some other outrageous things I've tried in the kitchen, why skip out on a down-home comfort food as simple as Split Pea Soup? Especially since that is one of the things Nate likes to ask for. So I did it. I followed this recipe, mostly, well, maybe just using it as a guideline since this is something I've never tried out before. I now have a CrockPot Pea Soup cooking away as I write this. 


   On a thrifty note: While I am a lover of fresh produce, I also value my time. I have such an appreciation for convenience items such as frozen chopped onions, frozen slice carrots, and so on. It may seem more expensive to you to do it this way, but I watch for the bags to go on sale at Kroger for $1 a piece and grab some. Convenient, thrifty, and I don't have to worry about crying when I chop up the onions. :) Oh, and I prefer frozen to cans because of the nutritional content. Frozen keeps more nutrition and they can still be steamed, saving even more of the good stuff.

CrockPot Pea Soup

adapted from In Season Cooking

48 oz water

1 lb dried split peas, rinsed
6 cups hot water
6 tsp chicken bouillon granules
1 cup frozen chopped onions
1/2 cup frozen sliced carrots
4 tsp minced garlic, going for 2 cloves here
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

Toss everything but the salt and pepper into the slow cooker, cover and turn it on. It is that simple! Traditional Split Pea Soups have ham bone in it while it cooks or diced ham added near the end. I don't have either of these on hand, so I'm using the chicken granules instead. 

If you have 8-10 hours, let it cook on low. If, like me, you don't have 8 hours, turn the heat on high and cook for around 4 to 5 hours. What we are looking for at the end of cooking time is for the dried split peas to be very tender.

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   So I wasn't able to take a picture before my husband grabbed a bowl, and then another. :) So the soup was a success! The peas were very tender, and some had "mushed up" so the soup was creamy and thick. Before it was time to eat, don't forget to add the salt and pepper! My husband declared this much awaited Pea Soup a success and, while there are a few tweaks I'd like to make, he has forbidden any changes be made to this because it is just that good. :) I'll try to get a picture of one of the leftover bowls before it's gone. Enjoy!!

Yumm!!