I LOVE Split Pea soup, but being traditionally from the south, we put a bunch of nasty ham and pork in there. And even when I did eat meat, I never ate pork. Ugh…I hated it. Blerg. So, I made a SIMPLE and delish version of this, sans meat!

Ingredients:

8 oz of split peas

8 oz of carrots, chopped fine

4 oz of celery, chopped fine

1 onion, chopped fine

3 bay leaves

8 cups of water

1 packet of seasoning or a veggie bullion cube

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to season

(I used a brand called Washington’s Golden Seasoning and Broth. It is meat-free and gluten-free)

This is how simple this is, ready? Dump everything into a Crockpot. Add 8 cups of water. Stir real well, and crank it on high. Stir every few hours. Once it’s been in there for 5 hours, turn it down to low for another hour. 6 hours later…perfect soup. Great for those cold winter days! Season with salt and pepper for a little flavoring!

This meal is inspired by the fact I had most of this stuff in my fridge leftover already, and the other stuff only cost me a few dollars. And yes, if you were wondering, it was the day before payday! But, it is delicious. And, I had some rave reviews on samples AND recooks of this!

Ingredients:

Half an eggplant, sliced about 1 inch think

8 oz tempeh, cut into 2×2 inch squares, 1/4-1/2 inch thick

Olive Oil for sautéing

1 cup of brown rice (dry)

1 can of 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup

4 oz of light sour cream

1 onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 cup of shredded cheese (mozzarella, swiss…not cheddar)

Italian herbs

Cayenne pepper

Optional:

Breadcrumbs if you have them.

Preheat oven to 375 (350 if your oven runs a little hotter)

Start your rice first. Follow according to the directions in a pot or rice cooker.

Throw the onion and garlic into a pan with a drizzle of olive oil, and sauté over medium/high until the onions are clear. Place in a casserole dish, 10×10. Next, sauté your eggplant in olive oil as well. You may have to add olive oil, as eggplant is very absorbent. I sprinkle each piece with Italian herbs as well as a bit of cayenne if you have it. Brown each side of the pieces of eggplants, then on a cutting board, cut them into sixths, and add to the casserole dish. Next, sauté the tempeh, same as the eggplant. Once they are brown on each side, take out and dice into bite sized chucks. Throw into the casserole dish. Once your rice is done, throw that on top as well, then open the can of soup, and pour it in, as well as the 4 oz of sour cream. Fold all ingredients together, and sprinkle the top with cheese. Cook in the oven until casserole bubbles, 15-20 minutes or so, and then run under the broiler if the cheese isn’t brown.

Tada! Enjoy this delish, low-fat, comfort food!