Mediterranean Blackeye Pea Soup

In the Southern part of the U.S. it is traditional to eat black eye peas for New Years Day.  They are said to bring luck.  In lieu of cooking them with ham bone and seasoned with onions, tabasco sauce, etc.... I have opted to have them in a healthier soup.  It's southern, but southern Europe is the roots.  I ate this soup on so many cold rainy days as a child.  My mom added great northern beans and giant lima beans to the black eye peas.  She did not add cilantro or spinach, but I know she would have loved it.  For New Years Day, it's black eye peas as the only pea/bean.

Ingredients

2 8 oz cans of black eye peas (unseasoned) rinsed and drained. You can use fresh if time permits.

1 Medium onion (chopped)

3 carrots, cut in this slices

1 yellow bell pepper, chopped(you can use any color, I just like the yellow since I have red and orange vegetables)

1 or 2 medium russet potatoes (cut in bite size cubes)

2 celery stalks, cut in thin slices

1 small can tomato puree (about a cup)

1 can diced tomatoes. I like a lot of tomatoes, so I use about 2 cups)

1 tsp tumeric

1 tsp fresh oregano

2 cloves garlic or garlic powder or salt

water, chicken, or vegetable broth as needed (probably 3 cups or so) You can always add more.

salt and pepper to taste

fresh spinach

fresh cilantro

lemon zest and juice if desired

salt and pepper to taste

Saute the onion,, celery, bell pepper in one or two tablespoons olive oil until the tender.  Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cover until potatoes and carrots are tender.  You can also do what my mom did and leave one potato cut in half.  After the soup is ready, mash the halved potato and return it to the pot.  I happen to love cilantro, so after the soup is ready, I serve it in a bowl and add the fresh cilantro to the bowl.  I also add fresh spinach leaves that have rolled and cut into shreds. The amount you use is personal taste.  I also grate lemon zest on the top and add slice black olives (not Kalamata for this recipe, but plain black olives).  This would be great with feta cheese and hard bread on the side.   The wonderful thing about this soup is that you can adjust it the way you like it. Don't like carrots or celery? That's fine.   Soup is all to taste anyway.  You could also add hot pepper flakes if you like a hotter soup.  If you change the peas to lentils and the potatoes to rice, you have another great soup!