Fresh Vegetarian Pea Soup

I love soup, and pea soup is one of my favourites. It’s light, healthy, and easy to make. I am especially fond of pea soup after one of my recipes for it was published in a cookbook!

I made pea soup the other day, and the recipe I used was very similar to my own Spring Pea Soup. The difference was that for once, I had fresh peas on hand! I always make soup with frozen peas, but thanks to the garden this year, I had a huge bag of fresh peas to use! I topped the soup off with a dollop of Greek yogurt for a bit of extra creaminess, and it was so tasty. I would like to try this chilled, too, but so far have only had it steaming hot!

On another note…is anyone around Vancouver going to check out VegFest this year? I sure am!!

Pea & Ginger Soup (adapted from alive)
By Koko, August 3, 2012

Simple pea soup using fresh peas and herbs with an extra kick of ginger
Ingredients:

• Extra-virgin olive oil – 1 Tbsp (15 mL)
• Yellow onions – 1/2 cup (125 mL), diced
• Garlic – 2 cloves, finely minced
• Ginger root – 1 Tbsp (15 mL), peeled and grated
• Vegetable stock – 3 cups (750 mL)
• Fresh hulled peas – 4 cups (1 L)
• Fresh mint – 2 Tbsp (30 mL), finely minced
• Himalayan sea salt and freshly ground white pepper – To taste
• Plain Greek yogurt, optional –
• Fresh chives – For garnish

Instructions:
Heat oil in large saucepan. Add onion, garlic, and ginger, and saute until soft. Be careful not to brown. Add stock and peas; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until peas are tender, about 7 minutes. Using an immersion blender (or transfer to a blender), blend until desired thickness is reached. Stir in mint. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve warm with a dollop of yogourt and a garnish of fresh chives, or
serve chilled.