There’s something about cold weather that calls for soup. Not much does a better job of warming us from within after being outdoors in the elements.Ok, hot cocoa does this really well too, but I’m also talking about hearty meals here.

While we do our best to donate and help the hungry in other ways throughout the year, it’s especially important around this time of year. It’s hard to enjoy all of our own blessings, without reflecting on other families without.

This holiday season, I’m thrilled to be a part of Share Our Strength‘s Share Our Holiday Table campaign, which is a virtual, progressive fundraising dinner to raise awareness of child hungry here in the U.S.in a fun way. We also hope to raise funds to help end childhood hunger. I hope you’ll help.

Here’s how the virtual, progressive fundraising dinner works: each day, a variety of meal ideas for each course of a holiday dinner will be shared from some of the best food bloggers out there. There’s something for everyone with ideas for family friendly meals, vegetarian, gluten free, and more.

How can you help? Share this story and message with friends!. The more people touched by the Share Our Strength goal, the closer we get to reach that goal of ending childhood hunger.

For my dish, I asked to share a vegetarian soup: Souper Split Pea Soup. While most split pea soups include bacon or ham, the flavor in our meatless soup came from fresh herbs, garlic and seasonings. We used the slow cooker, but you could also cook it over your stove, or use roasted vegetables to really bring out their flavor.

Souper Split Pea Soup

Serves 4 to 6

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Small yellow onion, diced

2 Stalks celery, diced

2 Cloves of garlic, minced

2 Medium potatoes, diced

3 Carrots, diced

1 1/2 Cups dried split peas

7 Cups broth or water (or combination of)

1 tsp Salt

1 Tbsp Oregono

1 Tbsp Basil

1 tsp Thyme

1/2 tsp Pepper

Add olive oil to skillet, along with diced onion, celery and garlic. Saute approximately 10 mins. Add to slow cooker. Layer in split peas, vegetables and herbs. Pour stock over ingredients. Cover and cook for 5 hrs on high, or 8 to 10 on low.

We enjoyed it this week, on a cold, wintry night, with rosemary bread toasted in the oven with a little garlic butter. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did (my son requested leftovers in his lunch tomorrow, it’s that good).

Check out the other blogs sharing meal ideas, and helping Share Our Strength end childhood hunger:

December 9: Soup

Gourmet

• edible cville
• The Runaway Spoon (read the post)
• A Girl, A Market, A Meal (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Ladles and Jellyspoons (read the post)
• Two Dollar Dinners (read the post)
• All About Alton Brown
• Cookie Central’s Great American Bake Sale (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Good Life Eats (read the post)
• Feed Our Families (read the post)

Gluten Free

• Celiac Teen (read the post)
• Celiacs in the House (read the post)
• Gluten Free Life with Jen
• And Love it Too! (read the post)

December 8: Salads

Gourmet

• The Bitten Word (read the post)
• girlichef (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Food For My Family
• Cook It Allergy Free

Vegetarian

• Book of Yum
• Glugle Gluten-Free (read the post)

Gluten Free

• Add a Pinch (read the post)
• Gluten Free Diva (read the post)

 

December 7: Drinks

Gourmet

• Food Woolf (read the post)
• The Gringo Chapin (read the post)
• Neo-Homesteading (read the post)
• Three Many Cooks (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Fat Wuz Here (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Lexies Kitchen (read the post)
• Simply Sugar and Gluten Free (read the post)

Gluten Free

• Gluten Free Easily (read the post)

December 6: Appetizers

Gourmet

• The Italian Dish (read the post)
• Recipe Girl (read the post)
• Neo-Homesteading (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Family Fresh Cooking (read the post)
• Giving Up on Perfect (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Two Peas and Their Pod (read the post)
• Smith Bites (read the post)

Gluten Free

• La Fuji Mama (read the post)
• Wenderly (read the post)