Soup and bird baths

Many thanks to the kind person who sent the bird bath, which I had listed on my amazon.com list. Alas, there was no invoice, so I don’t know who sent it. Also, I can’t put it out at this time, since there is no heating unit. 

Also, many thanks to JS who sent Shadowplay: the hidden beliefs and coded politics of William Shakespeare by Clare Asquith.

In the meantime, the "amaryllis" is putting on a show.

In the background you can see my big rosemary, which has survived for many years now.

I made some split pea soup last night.

From the grocer I obtained some pork neck bones, which I roasted a bit, and salt pork, which I sliced up.

In the meantime I chopped up some celery and onion, just a bit, and added them to the bones and salt pork.

I put in the dried split peas and covered them with water and chicken broth, about 3 to 1.

Simmer on a very low heat.   It’ll take at least 45 minutes.

That’s it.

Substantial, good and cheap!  Great on a winter day.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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18 Comments

  1. Jon says:

    Accch!!! Pttoooi!!!

    The three things I loathe the most in one bowl; onions, celery, and peas. Especially peas!!!

    What a waste of good, tasty, pork. I feel like Gollum watching Sam stew conies.

    I hear Obama’s even banned this from Gitmo as being cruel and inhuman. Brrrr!!!!

  2. Jon says:

    Oh, I guess O would ban this, but not for my reasons. Don’t want the little fellows eating pork, let alone peas!

  3. bird feeder says:

    Father & Co., perhaps you have some insights into this:

    I was putting out bread for a while, scattered on a cement backyard, and it was attracting sparrows and starlings. The aggressive starlings would mostly push the sparrows away.

    One in a while, a dove or two, and rarely, a blue jay would show up for a bit.

    Anyway, lately I’ve been putting out some generic supermarket wild bird seed. Again, scattered on the cement.

    The starlings haven’t really been back at all, and the sparrows have multiplied three- to four-fold since. This is good because I like the sparrows more.

    I’ve also now been getting this lone baby bluejay. He is much braver than the sparrows, who continuously land and fly away frightened every 20 seconds. He camps out on the garage roof, and stays by himself. Once every few days I see one of the adult bluejays swoop by, but not for very long.

    It’s amazing to see the different bird psychologies.

    So what’s the point of my comment here?

    1. Is it typical for wild bird seed to attract mostly sparrows and deter starlings?

    2. Will wild bird seed attract other types of birds in different seasons throughout the year?

    3. What specific bird seed will attract more blue jays and cardinals and other nicer birds?

    4. What are your observations, if any, on bird psychology. [You’ll get nothing bird-brained from me!]

  4. Sid says:

    Nothing finer than split pea soup for winter warmth. Fr. Z thus a shepherd of souls AND stomachs. Eating it now as I read.

  5. Quantum Potes says:

    You forgot the carrots. [You’re right! And I had some too. But the soup wound up just fine anyway. Thanks for your concern.]

  6. Tominellay says:

    …oh, my gosh…that soup looks terrific… [It was! mmmm ]

  7. John Enright says:

    You gotta stop this Father! I’m trying to keep my weight under control. LOL!

  8. Anonymous says:

    You will enjoy Shadowplay, if for nothing else than the historical knowledge contained therein.

    But WS was most likely RC…

  9. J. Bennett says:

    I just ordered Shadowplay myself!

    The author, who is a Catholic, is the descendant of an Anglican nobleman who got his land when Henry VIII closed the monastery it belonged to and executed the monks.

  10. chadstei says:

    I am the one who sent you the bird bath Father. May you enjoy many hours with it.

  11. Melissa in NoVA says:

    Hi Father –

    I was wondering what color your pot is!

    Many thanks. Love the site.

    Melissa

  12. A Random Friar says:

    Add one of these bad boys to your bath and your birds will be hot-tubbing in mid-winter!

    http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw_1_9?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=bird+bath+heater+and+de-icer&x=0&y=0&sprefix=bird+bath

  13. Allena says:

    Father,
    I’m just sure this must taste delicious, and I would try it, I would. But um, I have five kids, and this bears a startling resemblance to something foul and I just can’t get past it.

    I’ll try the next one.

    Bird feeder, black oil sunflower seeds will attract more cardinals and Jays. It will also bring sparrows. Thistle seed hung in old knee highs is a great way to feed the finches.

    You can put out corn to lure I mean distract the squirrels..I keep forgetting its illegal to shoot them if you lure them up with food!

    I often put out a generic sweet feed I keep for stock for the birds and they like it. You will get more birds and a bigger variety with feeders though. Some birds are afraid of being on the ground, exposed to predators.

  14. Steve says:

    What happens to the bones?

  15. Gregg the Obscure says:

    The headline is prone to a certain misinterpretation on the part of a reader with a dark sense of humor. Glad you didn’t use the birdbath to lure little wild critters into the soup pot. Glad you enjoyed the soup too.

  16. Alan says:

    Fr. Z,

    Did you soak the split peas over night? Do you think that it really matters if one does this?

  17. Alan: No… they didn’t need soaking.

  18. nasman2 says:

    Not good for a Friday, but let us know if you attempt this:

    http://www.bbqaddicts.com/blog/recipes/bacon-explosion/

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