Dutch Pea Soup

With winter fast approaching I decided it was time to make a big pot of "erwtensoep" or "snert" as it sometimes also is called. This is a very traditional Dutch winter dish. And here is my version of it - a combination of some guidelines I found on the internet and of what I can remember when this was made at home.
This soup is sure to warm you up on a cold winters day.

Ingredients:
500 gr dried split peas
2 liters of water
a ham shank
a pig's trotter
spare ribs (I like to get some pork belly & cut away the bones saving the pork belly for some other time)
2 carrots, roughly chopped
2 potatoes, peeled and sliced
4 or 5 onions, roughly chopped
a leek, sliced
a celeriac, peeled and cut & cubed
a smoked sausage, sliced

Preparation:

Soak the peas in the water overnight
The next morning, drain the peas but reserve the water.

Add the ham shank, pig's trotter & spare ribs to the reserved water and bring to the boil. Skim off the foam (not absolutely necessary as the end product will not be a clear soup, but I do think it give a better soup), cover and leave to simmer for about 2 hours.

The soaked peas and simmering stock

After two hours, remove the meat & add the peas.
.
When cool remove the excess fat from the meat & take the meat of the bones. Cut or shred into bitesize chunks.

Veggies ready to go into the soup

After the peas have been cooking for one hour, add all the vegetables & cook for another two hours or so adding the shredded meat towards the end of the cooking time (if you prefer you could puree the soup before adding the meat, but I like my soup with chunky bites)

After two or three hours the soup should have thickened up so much that your spoon will stand up in it

Check the soup for seasoning (remember as said by the great Thomas Keller on Saturday Kitchen: salt will enhance the flavour that is already there, pepper will add a flavour to it)

Finally add the sliced smoked sausage and let it warm in the soup before serving either with the tradtional rye bread topped with grilled streaky bacon or just some fresh crusty bread

This quantity will serve a large family or friends group but also freezes well for upto 3 to 4 months, giving you an easy comfort dish on cold winter nights.