yellow eyed pea soup

Once again, Rancho Gordo farms comes up with an heirloom bean i am not familiar with. Similar to the more renowned black-eyed pea in flavor and aroma, these are beautiful medium sized beans with tremendous depth of flavor and a delightful texture.

for 8

soak one cup yellow eyed peas overnight. Then drain, rinse, place back in a pot, cover with water, add 2 bay leaves and a dried chanterelle and bring to simmer. Cover tightly, lower heat and cook for 12 minutes. These beans cook up fast! Remove from heat, drain again and put aside.

2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 leeks, chopped
10 cloves garlic, minced
10 collar leaves, slivered
1 shallots, minced
10 sun dried tomatos, reconstituted and drained
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp sea salt

in a soup pot, heat up oil and sautee the leeks with the salt for 4 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and following spices and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often.
2 tsp chipotle powder
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1.5 tsp cumin
1.5 tsp oregano
1 tsp black pepper

Add 6 cups of stock and bring to simmer. Finish with 1/3 cup lemon juice and chopped cilantro