Quick and fast pea soup

A super simple, super quick soup to warm you up

My friends…it’s been cold in Washington. How about where you are? When it gets to the middle of winter, all I want are hot soups and stews like the ones that I grew up with, the ones that my wife makes, the ones that we made for our daughters. Today I want to share with you one that’s extra easy…I’m telling you, it will take you 5 minutes, maybe 10 minutes if you strain it, but you could turn on your stove at 6pm and have dinner on the table before 615. I’m not kidding.

The magic of this soup is to use frozen peas, which I absolutely love. They are inexpensive, available everywhere, and good for you—they’re picked and shucked at their ripest, then frozen and sent to live in your freezer until you’re ready to use them. As a kid, I liked to think that they were alive, having a party in between the boxes of frozen foods and ice cream. Every time I would try to quickly open the freezer to catch them playing, they would stop! Sneaky peas…

When the soup is done, it will be warm. If you want to serve it hot, put it on the stove for a couple of minutes. If you want to serve it cold, chill it for an hour or two, then serve it in chilled bowls. In the summertime it’s a great cold soup, but in the winter time I love it hot! Just garnish it with a few pistachios, mint leaves, and a drizzle of olive oil, and you’re done (it’s also fun to add a few little pieces of jamón or crispy bacon…)! Boom.

Frozen Pea Soup, Served Hot or Cold

Serves 4 to 6

32 ounces frozen petite peas