Split Pea Soup

I told my mom that I really wanted to make her split pea soup because it's really low-fat and healthy for you. She responded with "how do you make split pea soup without a hambone"? Of course, I responded easily, you just don't add the hambone :) In all seriousness, I love split pea soup and I have never had it with the hambone. This recipe is adapted from the New Moosewood Cookbook. I liked it because according to this book, this soup is fat-free and that's key for my mom's diet!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups dry split peas
• about 7 cups of water (more, as needed)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
• 2 cups minced onion
• 4-5 medium cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 stalks celery, minced
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 1 small sweet potato, diced
• pepper to taste
• 3-4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Topping (optional):

• fresh, ripe tomato, diced
• freshly minced parsley

Method:

1. Place split peas, water, bay leaf, and salt in a soup pot. Bring to a boil, lower heat as much as possible to simmer, partially covered for about 20 minutes.

2. Add onion, garlic, celery, carrots, and sweet potato. Partially cover, and leave it to simmer for about 40 minutes with occasional stirring. If necessary, add more water.

3. Add black pepper and vinegar, to taste. Serve topped with diced tomato and minced parsley.