Thick Pea Soup

Take grene pesyn̄, and boile hem in a potte; And whan they ben y-broke, drawe the broth a good quantite thorgh a streynour into a potte, And sitte hit on the fire; and take oynons and parcelly, and hewe hem small togidre, And caste hem thereto; And take pouder of Canell and peper, and caste thereto, and lete boile; And take vynegur and pouder of ginger, and caste thereto; And then take Saffron and salte, a litull quantite, and caste thereto; And take faire peces of paynmain, or elles of such tendur brede, and kutte hit yn fere mosselles, and caste there-to; And then serue hit so forth.

½ lb. whole dried peas (see note)

2 c. water

1/4 c. chopped onion

2-3 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. parsley (chopped fine)

1 Tbsp cinnamon

2 long pepper (ground)

¼ c. cider vinegar (start with 3T, add to taste)

½ tsp. ground ginger

Salt to taste

Sugar to taste (optional)

Generous pinch saffron

Simmer peas in water according to the package directions. When soft, mash in a pot with a potato masher or immersion blender, until desired texture is reached. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until satisfied. (Optional: sweat onions in olive oil to soften the taste first.) I ground my saffron with the long pepper. I think it helps spread the saffron element faster and more evenly. This volume serves 4 unless you really like it, and then it serves 2.

Note: Dried peas need the touch of sugar noted in the recipe. You can also use frozen peas, which are sweeter. Split peas convey an entirely different flavor to the dish, not complementary to this spice mixture in my experience.