Feelin' the Need for Green

Last week I totally embraced the grey, cold winter days.  Today-not so much.  So, a lovely green sweater and a soul warming Split Pea Soup with Sour Cream Cornbread was the answer!

No...this isn't me. But the sweater is the same!

 Aubergine is one of the most universally flattering colors, don't you think?

A little conservative for my tastes, but you have to love the details!

In the absence of any real leaves, I just had to wear my own.

Now, Split Pea Soup has been much maligned in the food world, and if you've only had the drab, gloopy junk from a can, well, I can understand why.  But, when made from scratch, it is hearty and rich-not the same thing at all!  Add a bit of bread, and you have the perfect winter meal. This recipe was given to me by my friend Linda-kudos to her!

Smashed Pea and Barley Soup

2 cups split peas

6 cups water

32 oz. organic/free range chicken broth

1/3 cup onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

Juice of 1 lemon

1 t. salt

1 t. sugar, preferably raw (aka turbinado)

1/4 t. parsley

1/4 t. white pepper

1 bouquet garni thyme (sprigs of fresh thyme tied into a bundle for simmering)

1/2 cup barley

6 cups water

2 medium carrots, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

1 small potato, diced (skin on)

Rinse and drain the split peas, then add to a large pot with 6 cups water, broth, onion, garlic, lemon juice, slat, sugar, parsley, and thyme bouquet.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 1 hour 15 minutes, until peas are soft.

While the peas are cooking, combine the barley and 6 cups of water saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for an hour and 15 minutes.  The barley should be soft and absorb most of the water.

If you wish to have a smoother soup, blend with a hand held blender or process in a blender, working in small batches.  I prefer my soup to be a bit chunkier, so I skip this step.  I also find that as the soup cools, the peas break down on their own and become a bit smoother.

Add the carrots and potato and simmer for another 20 minutes.  Drain barley using a colander or sieve.  Add barley to peas.  Allow the soup to sit for 15 minutes before serving.

Easy peasy! (Sorry, I couldn't resist!)

In the south, cornbread is a staple.  Although fewer and fewer know how to make it from scratch.  Most use some sort of cornbread muffin mix, which is sweet and, quite frankly, an abomination in my opinion. Bleh.  While I do make straight up cornbread (I'll share that recipe another day), tonight we are having Sour Cream Cornbread.  Now, normally I don't like using canned vegetables of any kind, but this recipe calls for canned cream corn (and honestly, is the ONLY way you could make me eat canned creamed corn).  The result is a light, fluffy and moist almost corn pudding-ish bread.

Sour Cream Cornbread

1 cup self-rising corn meal

2 t. baking powder

1 can creamed corn

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup sour cream

Mix dry ingredients together.  Add corn, eggs, oil, and sour cream.  Mix well and pour into a greased 9 x 9 inch pan.  Bake at 400 F for 30 minutes.  Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with Honig Sauvignon Blanc and stay warm, my lovelies!

Cheers!