Danish Pea Soup with Pork

Ingredients

• 1 lb yellow split peas, washed (and drained)
• 2 lbs lean bacon or smoked pork butt (in one piece)
• 3 medium carrots, scraped
• 1 celery root, peeled & 1/4-ed
• 4 medium leeks, white parts (use white parts of leeks only, cleaned and washed)
• 2 medium onions, peeled & halved
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 lb pork sausage link (cook and drain sausage links)

Directions

1. 1

   large kettle with 6 cups water.

2. 2

   Cook slowly, covered, 1 1/2 hours, until tender.

3. 3

   Put bacon, carrots, celery root, leeks, onions, thyme, salt, and pepper in another kettle.

4. 4

   Cover with water.

5. 5

   Cook slowly, covered, 40 minutes until vegetables and bacon are tender.

6. 6

   Take out bacon; slice and keep warm.

7. 7

   Remove vegetables and add to cooked split peas with as much as the broth in which the vegetables were cooked as desired to thin the soup.

8. 8

   Reheat, if necessary.

9. 9

   Ladle soup, including vegetables, into wide soup plates and serve sliced bacon and the cooked sausage links separately on a platter.

10. 10

    Serve with dark bread, mustard, and beer.