luck be a legume

Black-eyed pea and ham soup. Boy, am I on a slow cooker soup kick! There's just something so appealing about taking care of supper before everyone else gets up in the morning.

It doesn't hurt that it provides a nourishing and soul-satisfying dinner (with lots of leftovers to boot!). I actually made this on New Year's Day, since it's well known in these parts that black-eyed peas have a magical power to bring luck throughout the year.

It was a great soup--though there was no ham hock involved, there was plenty of leftover ham, lots of veggies (including kale!), and a generous amount of herbs.

Magic beans or not, I'm already the luckiest lady in the world.

Lucky Legume Soup
(printable recipe)
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:

• 1 onion, diced
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1 cup chopped ham
• 8 cups chicken broth
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
• 4 cups chopped kale

Directions:
To the bowl of your slow cooker, add the onions, carrots, celery, ham, chicken broth, bay leaves, and spices.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
Add the black-eyed peas and kale and cook for 30 minutes to an hour more.
Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2½-3 hours, stirring occasionally, until the peas and ham hock are very tender.
Remove the bay leaves and serve.