Split Pea Soup

This is my aunt's recipe.  This is a soup. If you like pea soup thick like a stew, put in only 4 cups water.

Split Pea Soup

Vilma Bezek, MN

1 1/2 c ham, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tsp salt; if desire
1 onion; diced
6 cups water; heated
4 medium potatoes; cut in 1/2 in. cubes
2 cups split peas; uncooked
1-2 carrots, shredded
1 stalk celery; diced

Put water and split peas into crock pot. Set to high. Add ham, celery and onion. Add salt if ham had been reduced sodium. Cook for 2 hours on high. Add potatoes and carrots. Cook for another 2 hours. Serve.

To prep ham: Boil ham on bone for 45 minutes. Use water for soup water. Remove ham from bone and cut into cubes and add to soup. Toss bone. Finish according to above directions. Alternative: Just put ham on bone into crockpot. Meat can be cut up and bone removed either before adding potatoes or afterwards.

NOTES : Start this at 1:30, be finished before 6 p.m.  Freezes very well. I honestly never liked split pea soup (loved the smell) until I added potatoes to it.