Tarragon Zucchini Pea Soup

Wednesday was yet another day that I arrived home from the gym, tired, and no husband to share dinner with. And I was starving. Yes, I'm always starving. So dinner needed to be quick, but I was still intent on making the planned meal: pea & tarragon soup. I think I had the whole thing ready, including a side of Italian chicken sausage and a whole wheat roll, in about 20 minutes.

What I thought was going to be a bland soup turned out to be velvety and flavorful, and made an amazing combo piled on top of the bread with chunks of sausage. I was in some sort of England meets Italy heaven, piling each bite of roll with peas and meat. There could definitely be a version of this soup including the sausage from the get-go, that would go over well with the meat-eaters. But, for the moment, I kept it sans-sausage in case the husband went for it (which he hasn't, since he seems to have some unexplained aversion to green food).

Tarragon Zucchini Pea Soup
(4 servings)
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 C chopped onions
1 C chopped green zucchini (1 medium)
1 lb bag of frozen Green Peas
2 C Water
1/4 C fresh Tarragon leaves
Kosher Salt & Pepper

1. In a medium saucepan, saute the onions in olive oil for 2 minutes.
2. Add the zucchini, cook another 2 minutes.
3. Add the water and half of the peas (about 1 C). Bring to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the tarragon and transfer to a blender and puree (hold a towel over the loose cover insert to let steam escape).
5. Add the soup back to the pot, over medium heat. Add the remaining peas and bring to a boil until peas are heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste (I used about 1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons of Kosher salt, and about 25 grinds of pepper).

Serve with bread for dipping.