Share a Recipe: Vegetarian Split Pea Soup

Vegetarian split pea soup is a warming, delicious way to use the dried green and yellow split peas that are often available at Share pantries.

Many thanks to instructor Catherine Wuenschel from Health Promotion Council for teaching this recipe at Second Antioch‘s latest nutrition class! Join us for more cooking demos and tastings that highlight ingredients often found at our partner pantries, every first and third Wednesday of each month through April 2024.

Vegetarian Split Pea Soup

This vegetarian split pea soup takes about 30 minutes to prepare and 1 hour and 30 minutes to cook. The recipe recommends cooking the soup in a heavy-bottomed pot like a Dutch oven, but it could also be made in a slow cooker.

Pro tip from nutrition instructor Catherine: when you’re cooking vegetarian, try to get the most flavor out of every ingredient! Catherine suggests caramelizing these vegetables a bit before adding them to your soup.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• ~2 medium onions finely diced
• ~4 carrots finely diced
• ~4 celery stalks finely diced
• Fine sea salt and black pepper
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 Tbsp. dried Italian seasoning
• 1.5 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 64 oz (8 cups) good quality vegetable stock
• 1.5 cups green or yellow split peas
• 2 dried bay leaves
• Optional, but recommended: zest and juice of 1 lemon, crusty bread for dipping, freshly grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley or thyme for serving

Preparation

Step 1

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large (5.5 quart or larger) heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add diced onion, carrot, celery, and sea salt and black pepper to taste (suggested amount: 2 tsp fine sea salt and 1 tsp black pepper). Cook until vegetables are softened and onion is beginning to turn golden, 7-9 minutes.

Step 2

Add minced garlic, 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning, 1.5 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. dried thyme, 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.

Step 3

Add in 1.5 cups rinsed split peas and 2 dried bay leaves. Pour in 64oz (8 cups) vegetable stock. Stir, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered, for 60-90 minutes, stirring occasionally so the peas don’t catch on the bottom of the pot. The soup should be ever so slightly bubbling at the edges, but not rapidly boiling or bubbling. Cook until split peas are cooked down and soup is thickened to desired consistency. (You’ll want to stir a bit more frequently as the soup begins to thicken. Add a splash more broth if it gets too thick for your preference.)

Step 4

When ready to serve, remove and discard bay leaves. Remove 2 cups of the soup and blend until completely smooth. Return blended puree to the soup and mix through. Add in 1 tsp. lemon zest and 2 Tbsp. lemon juice if using. Taste and season, adding additional sea salt and black pepper as needed (suggested amount: another 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper).

Step 5

Ladle soup into bowls and serve with buttered crusty bread, a sprinkle of black pepper, and fresh parsley or thyme if using. Add grated Parmesan cheese to individual bowls if desired. Enjoy!

Storage

This soup stores nicely in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, add the soup to a small pot and heat over low until warmed. The soup will thicken as it cools, so you may need to add some additional vegetable stock. The soup will also freeze well for up to 2-3 months.