Chunky Split Pea Soup

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• Salt
• Garlic
• Water
• Pepper
• Onion
• Carrots
• Bay leaf
• Carrot
• Chicken
• Ice

Directions

1. Chop the onion into small dice and finely mince the garlic. Warm the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat, then cook the onion and garlic until they’ve softened. Stir in the chopped carrots and celery, and cook for a few more minutes.
2. Place the ham hock and peas in the pot. Pour in just enough water to barely cover the ham hock, about 6-8 cups. Add the bay leaf and 6 tsp (or cubes) of chicken bouillon. Cover the pot, bring everything to a simmer, then turn the heat down to low and simmer for 1 hour.
3. Cut the potato into small chunks, stir it into the soup, and keep simmering until the potato is tender, about 10 minutes. By now, the peas should be fully broken down too. If they still look intact, keep simmering until they’ve softened into mush.
4. Take out the bay leaf and ham hock. Ladle 1/3 to 1/2 of the soup into a blender and puree until smooth, then pour it back into the pot and stir it through the remaining soup. Pull the meat from the ham hock, chop it into small pieces, and add it back to the pot. Taste, then adjust the salt and pepper to taste.