Wednesday, March 25, 2009

From Soup Peas to Pea Soup


Last year I chose a few new varieties of pea for my garden, one of those was a soup pea called 'purple podded' or 'capucijner' pea.  Mainly I was interested in having three different colors in the pea patch, I was only mildly interested in saving the dried peas to make soup.  Good thing I did, the soup was the best I have EVER had!  The first photo shows the beautiful color of these peas in the garden last summer, then the peas in the pot, with some ham from the Rockville Market Farm, a little onion, celery and carrot. Easy Peasy!!!

 

My biggest surprise was the texture of the finished soup, the peas stay whole, and retain their shape.  Unlike split peas they still had their little seed coats on so they didn't mush down too much.  I hadn't believed that I would be able to taste the difference, but the flavor was almost smokey, and super rich.  These peas were a real treat and something I will be growing this year.  I set aside the best looking seeds to plant, I also marked out pods last summer that produced more than eight peas and saved those, to try and perpetuate a productive line. Hopefully the peas will be planted in the next few weeks.   I love it when crops come full circle.


3 comments:

Wayne Stratz said...

that is one grand circle. the weak link in my circle is seed saving.

also--- thanks for the Frost poem.

chaiselongue said...

The purple podded peas look lovely - and so does the soup!

B + S said...

Wayne- I am still learning about the seed saving thing, peas and beans have been a fairly simple step though. I try to learn a new one every year. This year I am hoping to hand pollinate a few squash and save the seed. Lettuces are also easy as they don't cross with each other.
I love Frost, especially in the spring.

Chaiselongue- It was sooooo good!! I can't wait to plant them again.

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