Green Peas Soup, Without Meat

Ingredients

• 1 quart large, full-grown green peas
• 3 quarts water
• 5 pints cooking liquor from peas
• 3 to 4 ounces butter
• 3 whole large cucumbers
• 3 to 4 whole lettuces
• 1 to 4 whole onions
• parsley
• 12 to 20 leaves mint
• ½ teaspoon salt
• white pepper or cayenne
• ½ to ¾ pint young peas, boiled

Instructions

1. Boil one quart of large, full-grown peas tender in three quarts of water with salt and soda as directed.
2. Drain the peas and pound them in a mortar.
3. Gradually mix the pounded peas with five pints of the cooking liquor.
4. Return the mixture to the fire and stew gently for a quarter hour.
5. Press the peas through a hair-sieve.
6. In a separate pan, simmer three to four ounces of butter with three large or four small pared and sliced cucumbers, the hearts of three or four lettuces shred small, one to four onions cut thin, a few sprigs of parsley, and mint leaves if desired.
7. Keep the vegetables stirred over a gentle fire for nearly an hour.
8. Sprinkle the vegetables with half a teaspoon of salt and a good seasoning of white pepper or cayenne.
9. When the vegetables are partially done, drain them from the butter.
10. Put the drained vegetables into the strained pea stock.
11. Let the whole boil gently until all the butter has risen to the surface and been entirely cleared from it.
12. Throw in half to three quarters of a pint of young peas boiled as for eating.
13. Serve the soup immediately.