24 Days of Spice | Day 6 - Lebanese Za’atar

In searching for recipes to use with the Za’atar mix, there are lots of options for wraps and salads. In the spirit of December and easy-cooking, I went with a vegan Lebanese Green Split Pea soup.

I need my beans and lentils cooked extra well, so I soaked the peas for about 6 hours before starting. The recipe calls for pre-cooking the potatoes and peas before putting the soup together. I cooked them until they were just starting to break down and then drained the cooking water. Once everything was mixed together, I let the soup simmer for quite a while. You blend it all together, so extra cooking time doesn’t hurt, and I knew I added extra liquid.

I added 1 extra potato (because I love potatoes), and used a full carton on veggie broth (1 extra cup). Good choices based on the thickness of the soup - it’s the perfect consistency.

I keep Sumac on hand for a bit of extra zest on some quick meals. I like that it’s a main ingredient in the Za’atar and it added just the right flavor for the pea soup.

I served it with some leftover brown rice, which I often use now instead of crackers or a hunk of bread to keep it gluten-free.