Pea Soup with Black-Cat Croutons

Ingredients

• 5 slices bacon
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 large celery rib, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 (32 oz.) cartons low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 1/2 cups green split peas, rinsed
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup sour cream, optional

Preparation

1. Make soup: Sauté bacon in large pot over medium-high heat until crisp and brown. Remove and set aside. Add onion, carrot and celery to pan; sauté until vegetables begin to soften. Add garlic; sauté for 1 minute. Add broth, water, peas, bay leaves and thyme; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover pot and simmer until vegetables are tender and peas fall apart, stirring occasionally, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
2. Puree 5 cups soup in batches in blender. Return to pot. Stir in salt and season with pepper to taste.
3. Make croutons.
4. To serve, ladle soup into bowls. Crumble reserved bacon on top. Add a cat crouton and a dollop of sour cream to each bowl.