oregaoSplit Pea Soup

It has been awhile since I posted. Last week we had new carpet istalled in our dining room/family room and in the back laundry room. Ig took longer tp install than we had planned on. With everything out of the room, Ralph could not resist the chance to re-paint, re-finish a cabinet, and re-decorate. The result is a very nice looking room to spend time in. Kristen and I made Split-pea soup this week and I am going to include the recipe even though I think I have posted it before. January is a good soup month and this is a litte different kind of soup. Plus, it is one of our favorites.


SPLIT PEA SOUP

1 lb. split peas
2 quarts water
2 c. chopped carrots
2 c. chopped celery (including tops)
2 c. chopped onion
1/4 c. parsley flakes or 1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley
1 T. oregano leaves ot 1/4 tsp. ground, dried oregano
1 T.salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 Bay leaf
1 meaty hambone or hamhock. ( I used a small, leftover ham we bought for New Year's but never used.)
Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 hour thirty minutes until soup has formed. (Soup will thicken as it cools.) Remove bay leaf and meat from to soup. Return bite-sized pieces of meat to soup. Good served with a roll or piece of bread and butter.








SPLIT PEA SOUP





1 lb. split peas ( Kristen's husband was teasing her about having to split all those peas. At least I think he was teasing. Just buy a bag of dried, split peas at the grocery store. )


2 quarts water


2 c. chopped carrots


2 c. chopped celery and celery tops


2 c. chopped onion


1/4 c. dried parsley or 1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley


1 T.

Sloppy Joes

Recently we went to the cabin and bought a tub of barbecued flavored meat to take up for sandwiches. We did not like the taste of the sauce and it reminded me of the sauce mom used to makebfor sloppy joes. Kristen and I made it on last week's cooking day. I think I have posted it before but I will post it again below. This week Kristen and I are making fish cakes with creamed peas, a good recipe to have if you live in a landlocked like Idaho. You just mix a can of tuna with soft bread cubes, an egg and your choice of seasonings. I like dill. You should be able to spoon out about 2 T. each of mixture onto a hot greased skillet to fry fish cakes. Make creamed peas to spoon over the top when serving by making a white sauce and putting a generous amount of frozen peas in it.

BBQ Sauce for Sloppy Joes

2 T. butter
1 medium onion, chopped fine (about 1/4" pieces)
1 clove of garlic ( I skip this often because I don't have it in the house at the time.)
1/2 c. chopped celery
3/4 c. water
1 c. ketchup
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 T. vinegar
2 T. lemon juice
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. brown sugar
1 tsp. dry mustard

Melt butter, add onions and cook until browned. Add remaining ingredients and cook 20 min. Makes about 2 1/4 cups or enough for 3 lbs. meat. ( I usually just brown hamburger and make the meat sauce with the hamburger in it. This week Ralph bought very lean meat and I didn't know it so I told Kristen to drain the fat off. It turned out drier than usual so I guess some of the hamburger fat is necessary to bring out the flavor.)