Paleo-ish Split Pea and Ham Soup

Peas are another one of those ingredients that are on some primal/paleo diets, and not on others.  They are legumes, so they are technically not part of a strict paleo diet.  We've cut them out completely in the past during a Whole 30, but we've added it back in at times to find that we tolerate them well enough to have them now and then.  I've found that more folks on a paleo diet than not eat peas from time to time, so wanted to include a recipe with them on this blog.  Ultimately, do what works for you!

The folks over at YumSugar put together this fabulous recipe for the slow cooker, and I only had to make a few tweaks to it to make it work for us.  (Notice how I never use celery in any of my recipes?  I'm bizarrely very allergic to it, along with rhubarb and fennel.  Weird, huh?)

Anyways, this is yet another great soup.  It's really hearty and is definitely a meal in and of itself.  Perfect for using up that never-ending supply of bone broth you're making from all those whole chickens, chicken legs and other pieces of meat you eat!  :-)

The Tools:

-6 qt. crockpot

-1 (16 oz.) package dried green split peas, rinsed and picked through
-1 meaty ham bone, 2 ham hocks or 2 cups diced ham (I used a small meaty ham bone AND 1.5 cups diced ham)
-3 carrots, diced
-1 small onion, diced
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (OR 4 tsp. dried parsley, since you use approximately 1/3 of the amount of dried herbs as you would fresh...)
-1 bay leaf
-dash salt
-dash pepper
-6 cups chicken broth

The Process:

Layer ingredients in the slow cooker in the order listed here.  Add the chicken stock last.  Don't stir it up.

Cook on LOW for 8-10 hours.  If you've used a ham bone, the meat should be falling off of it.

Dig out the bones and the bay leaf and discard.  Serve and enjoy!

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