recipe time

Because I can't stop thinking about food I decided I would give you the recipe for my pea soup. I must warn you though that I'm a lazy cook and don't believe in precise measurements (which can result in a slightly different dish every time), pre-soaking, rinsing (surely a little dirt can't hurt!), or pureeing. I also usually prefer recipes with no more than four ingredients and less than ten minutes of preparation time. Like I said, I'm lazy.

Just As Good As My Mom's (Or Even Better!) Pea Soup

* 1 bag of dried peas (and remember, don't bother rinsing or pre-soaking—who has the time?)
* 2 (at least) onions, chopped
* 2 (or however many you like) celery stalks, chopped
* 3 (or however many you want) carrots, chopped
* some people use potatoes (I don't)
* salt and pepper to taste
* many cups of water (okay, about 8-10, or enough to leave 1-2 inches of boiling room at the top of whatever pot you use)
* 1 smoked sausage (also known as Farmer's or coil sausage I believe, or "rookworst" if you happen to live near a Dutch store)

Take the smoked sausage and let it well up (but don't boil!) in a pot of water. Remove the sausage when it looks nice and plump (maybe twenty minutes?) and put aside for later. Take the water the sausage was in and use that as part of the cooking water (that way you'll get some of the flavour already). Dump in (yes, no need to be all precise about it, LOL) the rest of the ingredients in a big pot (remember to leave room at the top) and let simmer, covered, for a good long while. Two hours minimum I would say, but really, the longer this soup simmers the better so if you have the time, three or four hours is fine as well. Cut up the sausage in pieces (small or large, whatever you want) and throw them back into the soup about half to three-quarters of an hour before you think it's done.

Oh, and anything you may have read about how the soup thickens and tastes even better the next day is absolutely true. But don't worry about how thick the soup is when you warm it up again as it'll get thinner with cooking, so don't you be diluting it! Make sure to cook a nice big batch and put the leftovers in containers for later. Yum!