(Adapted from Julia Child’s recipe in The Way to Cook)
Serves 6
Meaty ham bone and scraps from a ham, or 1 or more ham hocks
3 quarts water (or chicken stock)
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery, chopped and celery leaves
An herb bouquet: 3 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon thyme, 5 cloves tied in cheesecloth
1. Put all of the stock ingredients in a large pot and simmer, with the lid askew, for 4 hours.
2. Strain the broth and discard the vegetables and ham scraps (They have given their life for the broth.)
At this point you can make the soup, or you can refrigerate or freeze the stock to use later.
3 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup diced celery
2/3 cup diced onions
1 cup diced carrots
3 tablespoons flour
2 quarts ham stock
1 ½ cups split peas
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Garnish: ½ cup diced ham sautéed in butter (or 1½ cups croutons)
1. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the celery, onions, and carrots and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the flour, and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes.
3. Add the stock and split peas. Simmer, with the lid askew, for 45 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Use an immersion blender in the pot to blend the soup. (I like to blend it until about half of it is blended and there are still some chunks left.) Alternatively, put some of the soup in a blender. Fill it only half full, and hold the lid on securely with a pot holder.
5. Serve with the sautéed ham (or croutons) as a garnish.