Honorary Dish of the Day: Green Split Pea Soup

Honorary Dish of the Day: Our honorary dish of the day today is this smooth, creamy, and absolutely heart-warming Green Split Pea Soup that is truly multicultural in nature given its widespread presence in menus across many countries around the globe. I prepared this dish as an ode to our new home country, Canada, since yellow pea soup, called soup aux pois, is a traditional dish specifically of Quebecois origin. I used dry split green peas for this recipe since that is what I had available in my pantry...my resulting soup acquired the beautiful yellow hue due to the addition of the powerful and amazing turmeric powder 😉. The beauty of this dish lies in its sheer simplicity - you don't need to pre-soak the peas since they cook very quickly and you only need a few common pantry ingredients to successfully make this simple yet elegant and delicious soup! 

To prepare this dish, I first placed 2 cups of green split peas in about 4 cups of water in a medium-sized pot and boiled them for about 20 minutes until they were just tender but not mushy. I then heated up about 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a large pot and then sautéed a mix of chopped red onions, tomatoes, and garlic to create my base mixture. I seasoned this base sauté with some ground black pepper, turmeric, smoked paprika, and ground cumin. I then poured in the cooked peas with the boiling water, sprinkled some salt to taste, and stirred thoroughly to blend well with my base ingredients. After allowing this to simmer for about 10 minutes, I used an immersion blender to carefully puree the soup mixture until I achieved a smooth consistency. Once done, I garnished with some dry parsley flakes and roasted sesame seeds for added texture, and served hot as a main dinner entree. Hearty, decadent, and truly satisfying...this simple soup is a sure winner and the perfect comfort food for any cold winter night. I highly encourage you to give this a try sometime...Enjoy and thank me later! 😋😁