Black Eyed Pea Soup

This morning I woke up and threw a pot of this soup on the stove. Now the whole house smells good, and I'm trying to contain myself to wait until later to eat it. It is easy, inexpensive and yummy. I make it a little bit different every time, sometimes I just throw all the ingredients in a slow cooker and let it do the work for me, this time I didn't use the ham and it's still delicious. It turns out pretty spicy, so if you don't like spicy food I'd use one can of diced tomatoes with chiles and one can of plain diced tomatoes. Since I make it different every time this is more of a method and ingredient combination, use more chicken broth or water if you want it thinner, use cornstarch or flour if you want it thicker. You can even take 1 cup of the cooked peas aside and puree in a blender or food processor to give the soup more body, experiment, and enjoy!

Black Eyed Pea Soup

-1 lb dried black eyed peas, rinsed, soaked and cooked according to directions on bag

-chopped up ham (if using)

-1 medium onion, diced

-several cloves of garlic, minced

-2 cans tomatoes with chiles (like Rotel, mild or hot depending on your taste)

-1 teaspoon salt

-1/4 teaspoon pepper

-3-4 cups chicken broth (from can, homemade, or bouillon cubes)

Add onion and garlic to peas when cooking according to package instructions. Once peas are cooked to desired consistency add remaining ingredients and simmer for at least 20 minutes until the flavors are combined.

Shannon