It’s Sunday, so time for another soup. This week’s soup is brought to you by Marcia of Happy Trails to Us: My Reluctant Blog. She chose a soup that she tweaked slightly that was orginally published in the December 2006 issue of Bon Appetit. The soup is Split Pea and Green Pea Soup with Fresh Dill. This soup is very good. The addition of the frozen green peas and the fresh dill make it much more lighter and fresher tasting than most split pea soups usually taste. I followed the directions with a couple of exceptions: I forgot to buy a leek, so I used chopped yellow onion. I also used chicken broth and added a ham hock for flavoring while cooking. I’ll make this soup in the future again for sure. It’s healty also. Next time I might add some chunks of ham to make it more filling, and also double the recipe.

Split Pea and Green Pea Soup with Fresh Dill
Yield: Makes 4-6 first-course servings
Ingredients
3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large leek (white and pale green parts only), chopped (about 1 and 1/2 cups)
1 bay leaf
1 cup green split peas, rinsed
5&1/2 cups vegetable broth, divided (can use chicken broth, too, or a ham bone for seasoning).
1 cup frozen petite green peas, thawed
4 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill, divided
Salt
Pepper
Shredded Parmesan for garnish
Preparation
Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium high heat. Add leak and bay leaf. Saute until leek wilts, about three minutes. Add split peas and stir to coat. Add 5 cups broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until split peas are just tender, about 35 minutes. Remove from heat. Transfer 1 cup soup solids, bay leaf and remaining 1/2 cup broth to blender. Add petite peas and 3 Tablespoons dill. Puree until smooth. Return puree to soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with remaining 1 Tablespoon dill and shredded Parmesan for garnish.
(If you like the idea of whole green peas in your soup, then only puree half of the petite green peas, add the other half to the soup).