Black-eyed Pea Soup with Greens

by Brenda Langton, Tastemaker in Residence  

Brenda Langton, cookbook author and owner of Spoonriver restaurant shares her updated version of this classic Black-eyed Pea soup! 

Ingredients

1 cup dried black eyed peas
10 cups vegetable stock or water, if using water add some soy sauce
2 Tbsp olive or vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 tsp dried thyme 
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp red pepper flakes or 1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp salt
2 cups slightly packed chopped greens. kale, chard or spinach.

Instructions

1. Heat 1 tablespoon  oil in soup pot. When hot add onions and garlic, and saute' over medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
2. Add beans, spices and stock and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 30 minutes.
3. In a separate pan saute' vegetables in 1 Tbsp oil (carrots, celery and red bell pepper) for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.  
4. Add vegetables and salt to the soup pot and simmer 15 minutes together .
5. If you are including kale, add it 3-4 minutes before serving. If you are using spinach, it only needs 2 minutes to cook before serving.