Uncanny soup

Right now in Cincinnati with the temperature somewhere in the teens and a blanket of snow on the ground, nothing sounds better than a bowl of warm soup.  The trouble with packaged soups is that, first, they're packaged, and second, they're bland... unless you consider the taste of salt a flavor.  My goal for the year 2010 is to not buy any packaged soups, but to still have soup on hand that I can just heat and eat.  So I'll make 2 soups a week and freeze the leftovers.  Today I'm cooking up my favorite split pea soup, from The New Moosewood Cookbook, by Mollie Katzen.  Vegetarian and low fat, this is one of my all-time favorites.

SERVES 6 -8

Ingredients

• 3 cups dried split peas
• 7 cups water or vegetable stock (may need more)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 2 cups onions, minced
• 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 3 stalks celery, minced
• 2 medium carrots, sliced
• 1 potato, diced
• fresh ground black pepper
• 1 to 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, to taste (or red wine vinegar)

Optional toppings

• sesame oil (optional)
• fresh ripe tomato, diced (optional)
• fresh parsley, minced (optional)

Directions

1. Place first 5 ingredients in a large pot.
2. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, partially covered, for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent split peas from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
3. Add onions, garlic, celery, carrots and potato.
4. Partially cover and allow to simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.(You may need to add extra water).
5. Season to taste with pepper and vinegar.
6. Serve with a drizzle of sesame oil, diced tomato and minced parsley.