I love leftover ham. Many delicious things come from leftover ham....scalloped potatoes (we made these on Monday), bean soup, breakfast dishes....the list goes on and on. Split pea soup is one of my favorites and I have not have a chance to make it for a long time. I had just enough ham left from the scalloped potatoes to make the soup. However, the tricky thing can be determining when to make it because it can take time. I have heard of other people making it in the crockpot and decided to give it a try. This recipe is my version and I am sure there are many out there, but I wanted something really simple that would be ready to eat after my Thursday night workout class. Making this soup in the crockpot is shockingly easy and made me think "why did it take me so long to do this!?!". The key is not to stir until the very end when all the ingredients can be easily mixed together. Sorry for a crappy picture. The baby was about to wake up and I was eating and photoing on the fly! This recipe makes a ton so have a few freezer bags ready so you can freeze and enjoy it again!
Ingredients
1lb bag dried split peas
1 meaty ham bone (I usually cut most of the meat off), or 2 1/2 cups chopped ham
1 cup sliced carrots
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 cup sliced celery
2 cups chopped potatoes (I use russets and keep the skins on)
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
1 bay leaf
7 cups water
Instructions
Place peas in the bottom of the crockpot. Next, add the ham and ham bone. Layer the vegetables finishing with the potatoes. Add spiced and finish with water. Do not stir. Allow soup to cook on low 8-10 hours. Remove bay leaf and ham bones (they should a pretty clean at this point). Gently stir the soup till all ingreidents are evenly mixed. Season with salt and pepper if necessary.