Vegan Pea Soup

I was quite close to one grandmother in particular, my Nanny Fleming. I often miss her, but I think of her the most at Christmas time. She is responsible for some of my earliest food memories, mainly of the sweet variety - her trifle, bakeapple cream puffs, banana split cake and thin shortbread cookies shaped like suits of playing cards with a tiny bit of maraschino cherry right in their centres...I liked helping to cut them out, dusting the board with flour and sinking the  metal cutters into the tender white dough...

My strongest non-sweet food memory of my Nan is of her pea soup, a definite staple in the repertoire of every traditional Newfoundland cook. Around these parts, pea soup usually has salt meat in it, although sometimes it’s ham. Beyond that, salt and pepper are the traditional NL pea soup’s only concessions to seasoning. I like things to be a bit more savory, so I added some bay leaves,  thyme and garlic, as well as smoked paprika for spicy kick and liquid smoke for that ‘hammy’ flavor (can’t believe that I find that delicious, but I do!). This all adds up to a delicious wintry soup that isn’t exactly like my grandmother’s, but that I like to think she would enjoy. 

A few years ago local CBC Radio host Angela Antle had a series where she asked a member of the arts community to share their favourite recipe for a classic Newfoundland dish. I invited her into the basement apartment where I was living at the time and she stuck the microphone in the pot while I sautéed the onions...it was a really fun experience and I was happy to talk both about the actual soup and the wonders of liquid smoke to a background of chopping, stirring and bubbling....rumour has it that it can also be used on thinly sliced, dehydrated eggplant to make 'bacon'...hmm. May be giving that a try!

This recipe makes a large pot full - so make it for company, for your neighbors, or to freeze for some lazy winter supper sometime in 2012. 

Vegan Split Pea Soup
Serves 6-8

2 tablespoons olive oil
One yellow onion
1 large carrot

2 parsnips

1 medium turnip
8 cloves garlic
1 454 g bag of yellow split peas, rinsed
8 cups vegetable broth or water

4 bay leaves

1 tbsp thyme
About 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
salt and fresh ground pepper
Smoked paprika to garnish 

Chop onion and the other vegetables into a medium dice. The more alike the pieces are, the more evenly they will cook. Mince garlic cloves.

In a large soup pot over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and saute till starting to turn color. Add the other vegetables and continue to saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and split peas, and saute for 1 minute.

Add 8 cups vegetable broth or water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 45 to 55 minutes, until the split peas fall apart and become a thick texture. Add extra water a little at a time if needed.

Taste, then season with about 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (start with 2/3 tsp and adjust to taste), salt and fresh ground pepper. Garnish with smoked paprika, of the hot variety. It's nice to have it in a small dish on the table so that each person can adjust the heat according to taste.