Creamy Black-Eyed Pea Soup With Olive Pesto
The finished soup and pesto can be refrigerated, separately, for up to 1 week or frozen, separately, for up to 3 months. Defrost and warm the soup over low heat; bring the pesto to room temperature before serving.
1 leek, white and light-green parts, trimmed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 small carrot, scrubbed well and chopped
Leaves from 1 stem fresh thyme
1 15-ounce can no-salt-added black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
2½ cups homemade or store-bought no-salt-added vegetable broth
½ teaspoon kosher salt, or more as needed
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
FOR THE PESTO
1¼ cups pitted green olives
¼ cup lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 clove garlic
1 teaspoon capers, drained
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
For the soup: Cut the leek in half lengthwise, rinse thoroughly (including between the layers), pat dry and then chop.
Pour the oil into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, stir in the leek, garlic, carrot and thyme, and cook until the vegetables start to become tender, for 4 minutes.
Stir in the black-eyed peas and pour in the broth. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook until the vegetables are very tender and the flavors have come together, 15 minutes. Stir in the salt and pepper, and remove from the heat.
Meanwhile, make the pesto: Combine the olives, parsley, garlic, capers and oil in a food processor or blender; pulse until well incorporated but still a little chunky.
To finish the soup, use an immersion (stick) blender to puree until smooth. Taste, and add more salt as needed.
Divide the soup among bowls. Top each portion with a generous dollop of the olive pesto.
Serves 2
Nutrition Calories: 230; Total Fat: 15 g; Saturated Fat: 1 g; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 530 mg; Carbohydrates: 23 g; Dietary Fiber: 4 g; Sugars: 4 g; Protein: 6 g.
Adapted from "Gennaro's Fast Cook Italian," by Gennaro Contaldo (Interlink Books, 2018).