Crazy Day Crockpot Soup

I may have mentioned once or twice (ha) that I hate Thursdays with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.  The schedule is crazy from start to finish, including three consecutive after-school activities for one kid or another.  Figuring out what to cook for dinner is even more of a struggle than usual because of the time crunch: I managed to make a quick batch of sloppy joes for the kids and Himself early in the afternoon and stick it in the fridge for later, but that didn't sound good to me today.  So, in the five minutes I had before I walked out the door to pick The Girl up from school, I threw some of my go-to ingredients into the crockpot.

Five hours later, after the afternoon's frantic runs from hither to yon and back again, gym games and soccer and basketball behind me, I walked through the door to a delicious smell and even more delicious soup.  And it is so blessedly easy: only four ingredients!

Rinse a 1-lb bag of dried legumes of some kind.  I usually use green or yellow split peas or lentils. Put them in the crockpot with water to cover them by three inches or so, and season the water to taste with dry ham-flavored bouillon.  Throw in some chopped onions (or dried shallots) and chopped garlic (or my current favorite, flakes of dried roasted garlic), turn the crockpot on High, and there you have it.  Simple, nutritious, and shorter prep time than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich!