I grow Pink Eye Purple Hulls and treat them the way Farmerdill does... until they get ahead of me and then I treat them the way Dave does! I've only been growing southern peas for a couple of years and at first we were hesitant to try the method with salt pork (you know, the endless diet-watch) but this year I did it thinking "eh, it's just one slice of salt pork for a big pot, can't be too bad." Totally different flavor with the salt pork than the butter! Both good, though. I also did something last year where I boiled them tender, drained, then added them to a pan where I had sauteed onion, garlic, and hot pepper (all from the garden of course!) in olive oil. We quite liked that, too. Enjoy them!

I keep the extra jars of natural peanut butter in my pantry turned upside down. Then when it's time to break open a new jar, I turn it right side up for a few hours. I usually stir it with the long end of a sturdy wooden spoon, but I like Lars' idea of using a knife honing steel. I'm going to have to give that a try. To me, the most important thing is to make sure to bring up the harder & drier gobs from the bottom and incorporate them well into the rest of the peanut butter. Otherwise you run into those dry gobs later when you try to spread the stuff. I usually start slowly, poking the spoon end down to the bottom of the jar and moving it slightly to the center to let the oil can go down. Then I repeat that action until I've gone completely around the bottom of the jar. Eventually I get to the point where I start bringing up the bottom stuff and incorporating it with the rest of the peanut butter. The oil is what makes the peanut butter soft and spreadable. Without it, the peanut butter is more like peanut clay. It takes a while, but the results are worth it. The natural peanut butter gets as creamy as it's going to get and is perfectly blended. I store it in the fridge, and it stays blended until we finish the jar. I only buy 1 lb. jars, though. I tried doing it with the larger jars, and it was more difficult. I much prefer the taste and texture of natural peanut butter. The super creamy stuff like Jif or Skippy taste strange to me, and I don't like their texture either. I feel like I'm eating sweetened, peanut-flavored shortening.

I was just going to ask Jim where in the world he found a key "broad". (grin) Especially one who was good at spelling. Joe, that's why I love this place, the slips and mistakes are wonderful. My favorite was "puppy seeds", I think, or the person who made "crap cakes". LOLOL I never soak split peas, and they get nearly dissolved in a couple of hours, making a creamy texture that I like immensely. I never soak beans because I never think that far ahead, and was always told not to add sugar or vinegar before cooking dried beans. Old/stale beans do take a long time to get soft. I find that I cook beans in the crockpot all day, 8-10 hours, and they're always soft, LOL. Still, they're ready when I come home from work and that's a very good thing for me. So now I want a pot of beans and some cornbread....or maybe split pea soup instead. Annie

Sounds very good. My idea would be to have the pasta cooked & drained, the ham cubed & at room temp. and peas defrosted & at room temp. I'd put all of them in a buttered casserole and pour Alfredo sauce over, lightly stirring. Reheat about 15 min. in 350 F. oven., covered if sauce is thick, uncovered if it's thin. Searching 'recipe pasta ham peas' brought up several recipes.