Besides the Rose Bowl Parade and college football games, the other thing about New Years Day that I love is preparing the traditional dishes that bring you a bit of luck and few extra pennies in your pocket. Like most Southerners, I adore black eyed peas, cornbread, and collard greens. So the idea of creating a spread that includes all of these things is my idea of heaven. I have tested several recipes over the past few years, and while I have enjoyed them all, I was in the market for something a little different to ring in this new decade. I found this soup recipe on www.myrecipes.com, and I was immediately struck by its balance of simplicity and unique flavors. I love the idea of blending the saltiness and smokiness of the bacon with the earthiness and spiciness of the watercress. How unique! All this accompanied by the sweet flavor of a good bite of cornbread is a perfect way to start my new year.
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 cup (1-inch) cubed corn bread (about 3 1/2 ounces) (I'm going to use the extra boxes of Jiff leftover from Thanksgiving)
- 4 applewood-smoked bacon slices, chopped
- 3 cups chopped onion
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 cups cooked black-eyed peas (I'm using canned)
- 2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 cup chopped trimmed watercress (Try arugula if you can't find watercress)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
Arrange corn bread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add bacon to pan; cook 5 minutes or until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings in pan. Set bacon aside. Add onion and garlic to drippings; cook 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in peas and next 5 ingredients (through pepper); bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 40 minutes or until beans are very tender.
Place half of bean mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour pureed soup into a large bowl. Repeat procedure with remaining bean mixture. Ladle about 1 1/3 cups soup into each of 6 bowls; top each serving with about 2 1/2 tablespoons watercress, 2 1/2 tablespoons croutons, and about 1 1/2 teaspoons bacon.
Ooo, I can have this since all the ingredients are gluten free. This looks delicious. Maybe I will tackle this on Sunday for my Sunday Night Supper!!
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