SPLIT PEA SOUP

LYNN'S "SPLIT PEA" SOUP
2 smoked turkey legs *
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
16 ounces frozen cauliflower
16 ounces frozen green beans
Salt and pepper, to taste
Onion, carrot and celery, optional (see my comments below)

Put the turkey legs in a large soup pot. Add the broth, water and bouillon granules; bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until the meat is starting to fall off the bones, about an hour. Remove the drumsticks from the broth and set aside to cool. Meanwhile, add the cauliflower and green beans to the broth in the pot. Bring to a boil; cover and simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 30 minutes. Puree the soup with an immersion blender until smooth. Remove the meat from the bones, cut into bite-size pieces and add to the soup. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.

Makes about 12 cups or eight 1 1/2 cup servings
Can be frozen

* Two smoked turkey legs will yield about 2 1/2-3 cups cut up meat.

Per Serving: 124 Calories; 4g Fat; 15g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 2.5g Dietary Fiber; 3.5g Net Carbs

Lynn said that she doesn't care for carrots in her soup, but I do. Here's how to make a variation that has some onion, carrot and celery:

In a medium skillet, saut?in 1 tablespoon butter until very tender:

1 small onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
1 stalk celery, diced

Add to the finished soup before adjusting the seasoning. Cook until heated through. You could also add the raw vegetables to the pot along with the cauliflower and green beans and puree everything together.

Per Serving: 143 Calories; 5g Fat; 15g Protein; 8g Carbohydrate; 3.5g Dietary Fiber; 4.5g Net Carbs

This soup is excellent and it really does taste a lot like split pea soup. I changed Lynn's cooking method a bit to save some steps and only slightly tweaked the ingredients. Lynn only used one turkey leg in hers but the store where I shop sold them in packages of two so I used both. I figured they'd make the soup that much more filling and would provide some extra protein. If you only use one turkey leg or use a ham hock instead, figure on getting about 10 cups of soup. Thanks, Lynn, for your brilliant idea! I rated this recipe 5-stars for flavor and creativity.

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