Pea Soup with Cheddar Biscuits: Slow Food, FAST:

I am a proud new member of Slow Food International, Vancouver & Gulf Islands Convivium.  Since getting my welcome package from Italy, I have learned more about the origins and concepts of the Slow Food movement – including what convivium means.

I consider myself to have a pretty big vocabulary, and a passable knowledge of food.  That said, I must also say that convivium is not the only instance of (somewhat) exclusionary language that I have come across in the organization’s “Welcome to Our World”  handbook.  Hmmm…me no like complicated words…they make me wonder if they really want everyone to join their club.

What I do LOVE about Slow Food International is their philosophy about food.  This, thank goodness, comes down to three simple words, no gussied-up language required:

• GOOD – tasty and flavoursome, fresh, capable of stimulating and satisfying the senses.
• CLEAN  – produced without straining the earth’s resources, its ecosystems and its environments and without harming human health.
• FAIR – respectful of social justice, meaning fair pay and conditions for all concerned – from production to commercialization to consumption.

Wonderful ideals, no doubt!  But I know not everyone loves cooking as much as I do, nor do most people have hours to prepare a complicated weeknight dinner.  And that’s where my Slow Food, FAST comes in.  You’ll find easy to make sit-down meals that are ready to eat in an hour or less.

Think enchiladas with homemade corn tortillas, smoked paprika pork chops, and barley risotto rich with parmesan cheese. Sometimes, like today, I`ll employ the use of a slow-cooker, so that all of the cooking is done while you’re away, and it`s just a matter of whipping up a side dish when you get home — which means, of course, that you could be sitting down to dinner together in well under an hour.

Things happen when you sit down to dinner at the table.  The TV goes off, the cell phones and laptops are left to charge in another room, and you talk.  I am occasionally amazed that there is still something new to learn about Howard, even after 17+ years together.  Most of the time, it`s when we`re sitting at the dinner table, alone or with friends, that he tells a story I haven`t heard before.  And he has some wickedly good stories – you would too if you were a walking safari guide in Africa during your early 20′s.

As for my own secrets, I have a few.  The biggest is probably that I rarely follow a recipe exactly –even one of my own.  It’s not because I have trouble following the rules (although I do), but because I’m adaptable.  I mean, I’m not running to the store because I don’t have a leek for this soup, ya know?  Instead, I’ll substitute an onion, or a couple of shallots.  You’ll find my suggestions for no-stress substitutions at the bottom of each Slow Food, FAST recipe.

Oh yeah…and a convivium?  It’s a gathering occupied with feasting, drinking, and good company.  Maybe it does fit with Slow Food after all…

I didn’t get a picture, but I served a small raw shredded beet and carrot salad with our soup and biscuits.  I tossed the grated veggies with a dash of red wine vinegar, a quick pour of olive oil, s +p, and a pinch of dry mustard.  So good!  Remember raw at every meal?

Slow Cooker Pea Soup with Cheddar Biscuits

Yield 8-10 servings

While you can certainly cook and serve this soup on the same day, everyone knows that most soups improve with a night in the fridge.  I prefer to put this soup on just before we go to bed.  I cool it in the fridge until dinner – presto! – thick and tasty split pea soup, with plenty for leftovers to gift to a harried neighbour, or put in the freezer for a rainy day.

Split Peas	454 g	1 lb
Smoked Ham Hock	454 g	1 lb
Leek, finely chopped	240 ml	1 C
Carrot, finely chopped	240 ml	1 C
Celery, finely chopped	240 ml	1 C
Garlic, minced	1 clove
Chicken Stock	2.5 L	10 C
Bay Leaves, whole	2
s+p	TT

ml=millilitres       C=cups      L=litre       TT=to taste

Combine all of the ingredients in a slow cooker and season lightly with s+p.  Cook on low for 8 hours.  Remove the bay leaves and season to taste.  Serve with cheddar biscuits, garlic bread or crackers.

Cheddar Biscuits

Yield: (12) 1½” biscuits

The lemon juice, while optional, makes for a more tender crumb.  Biscuits, unlike soup, do not improve with age.  Leftovers are best eaten slightly heated the next day.

Milk	120 ml	½ C
Lemon Juice (optional)	3 ml	½ t
All-Purpose Flour	240 ml	1 C
Baking Powder	7 ml	1½ t
Salt	2 ml	¼ t
Butter, cold, cubed	45 ml	3 T
Cheddar Cheese, grated	60 ml	¼ C

Ml=millilitres        C=cup       t=teaspoon     T=tablespoon

Preheat oven to 450°.

Stir the lemon juice into the milk and set aside.  Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and toss to mix well.  Using a pastry cutter, 2 knives, or your fingertips, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles the texture of cornmeal.  Add the grated cheese and toss to coat well.

Add the milk all at once, and stir to combine.  Drop by spoonfuls into an ungreased mini muffin tin or baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.  Serve with butter.

Suggested Substitutions:

• No split peas?  Dried lentils work well too.
• Pork hock on the lamb?  Try a smoked turkey wing or leg, a piece of slab bacon, a raw skinless chicken leg (or 2), a couple of links of chorizo or andouille sausage removed from their casings and roughly broken up.  The soup in my picture is made with about ½ lb of ground pork mixed together with little of my homemade vegetable bouillon – sort of an adhoc sausage.
• Vegetarian?  Omit the meat and use veggie stock.
• What about the biscuits?  I used half whole wheat and half unbleached white flour, because some whole wheat is better than none.  You could use any type of cheese in these too.  Parmesan is great with a little paprika sprinkled on top of the biscuits just before they’re done.
• Got a toaster/convection oven?  I reduced the heat on mine to 400, and the biscuits baked up golden in 12 minutes flat!

Remember, unless you’re baking, recipes are guidelines, not hard and fast rules.  Have fun!

Other soups you can make in the slow cooker:

• Spiced Red Lentil Soup
• Slow Cooker Garlic Soup with Ham
• Maple Baked Beans (great with Pender Island Cornbread)