Home made pea soup with a ham bone is my all time favourite soup, but I don’t have ham very often. I always joked with my mom that the uglier the pea soup is in the fridge, the better it will taste when you reheat it.

My easy soup is to pick 4-6 items from: mushrooms, carrots, leeks or onion, broccoli stems or fennel, and frozen peas. I add soy sauce to the broth for an umami flavour. I don’t ever have anything measured, but I do taste and sample a lot along the way.

I like to sauté my mushrooms with garlic in a pan, cook off the moisture, then add soy sauce and spices and let that simmer for a while. I don’t know if it makes a difference, but I like to think it infuses the mushrooms with more flavour.

I’ll try throwing in some salsa next time. My mom always put tomatoes in her soup and they were good, maybe it’ll turn out similarly.