Hello foodies everywhere,

Last night the clan members were speechless at dinner time. The soup was too good. After shoveling down a few spoonfuls, we all managed to utter wows and yums, then returned to business.

Lynne made two pots, one with and one without ham. The ham had been boiled off in the afternoon, from a leftover, frozen Easter ham bone, but you can get yours from the butcher or supermarket.

While the bits of smoked ham were tasty (in mine) the ingredient that made this soup especially delicious was the addition of BBCC Gold Habanero Chilli Sauce.

I've always had a special reverence for this sauce, created by our old friend Ashif Mawani, a radiographer in Alice Springs. It is exceptional. I call it Transcendental Chilli Sauce...it takes my taste buds away to an exotic place where flavours, colours and sounds are all bright and crisp.

Lynne also made a fresh salsa to go on top of the soup, but I didn't realize this until afterwards and ate mine on top of a garden salad with lettuce, cucumber, radishes, young green beans and avocado with vinaigrette. You don't need it, but if so inclined, your favourite hot bread, tortilla, flatbread or cracker would also go well alongside.

Before I actually get to the recipe, I wanted to welcome our new on-line sales distributor...

www.onlyoz.com.au

Check out their website for a lot of Aussie brands that may be hard to find right now.  They will deliver them to your door.

For a list of all our Australian and International Distributors and on-line sales, click on....

http://www.byronbaychilli.com/distributors.htm

And now for the good part....

Golden Split Pea Soup with Fresh Salsa

1 meaty ham bone (unless you prefer vegetarian, in which case skip the ham)

10 cups water

3 chicken or vegetable stock cubes

500g yellow split peas

1 cup diced carrots

1 large onion, chopped

1/4 cup Gold Habanero Sauce

1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley or coriander

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

In a large pot, place ham bone in water and bring to the boil. Turn heat down and simmer for 1 hour or until meat falls away from the bone.

Remove bone and meat from the liquid.  Coarsely chop the meat and return to the liquid with the split peas, stock cubes, onion and carrots. 

Bring to the boil, then turn heat to simmer and cook for approximately 45 minutes, stirring more often as the soup thickens. 

Add chilli sauce and chopped herbs and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve with a spoonful of fresh salsa on top.

Fresh Salsa

1/2 red onion, finely chopped.

4 tomatoes, finely chopped

1/2 chopped coriander

2 finely minced red or green chillis

   (remove seeds for less heat)

salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice or rice wine vinegar

Combine all ingredients and season to taste with salt.

Love and Good Food to Everyone, Everywhere, Especially MOMS OUT THERE...

Have a happy Mother's Day

the Bolands