Happy New Year's and Black Eyed Pea Soup

Happy New Year’s everyone! Still playing catch-up here, and been having some fun too. The weather has been perfect and any time outside feels like a breath of fresh air. We have been taking long walks in the Mountain Preserves close to our home. On one of our daily adventures Olive got a sticker in her paw and even after Don removed the sticker she did not want to walk. He then carried her until we came to a flat and not so rocky trail where she would walk on her own. Pretty impressive as she is a seventy pound 10 year old chocolate lab.

Yesterday I made a pot of black eyed peas. Usually they are made with pork and greens and then served along-side a slice of cornbread. Here I made them meatless and cooked them slowly in a dutch pot on the stove-top. In the Southern United states eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s is thought to bring prosperity in the New Year, the peas representing coins and the greens symbolizing money.

Ingredients:

2 cups dried black eyed peas
1 sweet onion (diced)
2 medium-sized carrots (diced)
2 to 3 stalks of celery (diced)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
¼ cup red wine vinegar
2 tomatoes (diced)
8 cups water
1 hand full fresh parsley (chopped)
1 hand full fresh oregano (chopped)
3 cups chopped greens (I used chard (spine removed)and spinach)
½ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (depending on your preference)
Salt and pepper to taste

To prepare:

In a large bowl of water soak beans overnight, completely covered.

Drain and rinse beans, set aside. In a large soup pot add a tablespoon of olive oil, then add onion, celery and carrots and sauté until tender, about 12 to 15 minutes, add garlic sauté constantly about one minute. Add red wine vinegar and sauté until evaporated. Add tomatoes, water, beans and then herbs. Cook until beans are tender. (Mine took a couple of hours).

Add greens, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, simmer another 40 minutes.