Pea & Ham Soup...

Last night the “deep freeze” weather was finally getting to me, so I made a pot of one of my favorite soups. Some years ago, I got this recipe at the Boat House, a wonderful restaurant on Mirror Lake in Lake Placid, New York. Although it is a warm and deeply satisfying dish, it has a fresh and vibrant character. If it were possible to pick peas from the pod and cook them within a matter of hours, then I would insist that everyone used fresh peas, but the frozen peas available to us at the supermarket are fresher than the most so called fresh varieties. This is because the latter are frozen within minutes of being picked, preserving the intensity of the fresh flavor.



Pea & Ham Soup

Ingredients:
3 cups of fresh shelled peas, divided*
1 cup of the pods from the peas
~ picked over, removing the ends
1 shallot, cut in half
1 clove of garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
kosher salt
fresh cracked pepper
1 cup ham, cubed

In a large Dutch oven type pot, heat olive oil on medium and add garlic, pods, and shallot. Cook for about 3 minutes. Then add 2 cups of the peas and the stock. Season with salt and pepper, to taste and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and puree until smooth. Return to the pot and add the reminder of the peas and the ham. Place pot on a medium heat burner and warm for about 5 to 10 minutes, so all is heated through.

* I like to use some of the whole peas to give the soup texture, but you can puree all 3 cups, if you prefer.

Serves 4

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George’s notes:

• Pea soup with diced ham is a hearty, soul-warming bowl of delicious goodness. It's also one of the easiest soup recipes there is to prepare.
• The common garden pea, also known simply as green pea. But there's nothing common about its flavor, particularly during the peak months of March, April and May and again from August to November. The French are famous for their tiny, young green peas known as petits pois. Choose peas that have plump, unblemished, bright green pods; the peas inside should be glossy, crunchy and sweet.