Rick's Yummy Split Pea Soup with Ham

Ingredients

• 1  bay leaf to taste
• 0.5 teaspoon pepper black freshly ground
• 1.5 cups carrots finely chopped
• 1 cup celery finely chopped
• 7 cups chicken broth divided as needed
• 1 teaspoon garlic minced to taste
• 14 ounce peas split green rinsed
• 0.3 teaspoon ground thyme 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 1.5 cups onion finely chopped
• 2 pounds pork neck bones smoked smithfield® (such as )
• 10 ounces ham smoked cubed carolina pride® (such as )

Equipment

• frying pan
• pot

Directions

1. Place the split peas into a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand for at least 3 hours. Rinse peas until the water runs clear; drain.
2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Saute onion, carrots, and celery in hot oil until soft, 8 to 12 minutes.
4. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.
5. Combine peas, onion mixture, 6 cups chicken broth, bay leaf, black pepper, and thyme together in a large pot. Stir neck bones into chicken broth mixture, adding more chicken broth as necessary to cover bones completely. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer until peas have dissolved and meat is falling from the bones, 2 to 3 hours.
6. Transfer bones to a plate to cool.
7. Stir cubed ham into soup. When neck bones are cool enough to handle, remove remaining meat from the bones; discard bones and stir meat into soup. Continue to simmer until ham and meat are heated through, about 5 minutes.