From the kitchens of Amy & JJ 

This is a southern inspired recipe for your upcoming get togethers. These black-eyed peas go great on a picnic table or in addition to a meal that could use some “stick to your ribs” style side dishes.

Ham Hocks and Black Eyed Peas
3 Cups Dry Black-Eyed Peas
12 Cups Water
3 Pounds Ham Hocks (preferably smoked)
1 1/4 Cups Chopped Onion
1 Cup Chopped Celery
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/8 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 Bay Leaf
2 Medium size Okra pieces, sliced.

Rinse peas. In a 6 quart Dutch oven, combine water and peas. Bring to boiling and simmer two minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand one hour. NOTE – you can also soak the peas overnight if you wish and disregard the step above.

DO NOT DRAIN

Stir in ham hocks, onion, celery, salt, cayenne and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer till hocks are tender and black eyed-peas are done – roughly 1 and 1/2 hours. Add Okra and simmer another 15 minutes. Discard bay leaf and season to taste. Note – I tend to add more cayenne and salt, BUT the flavor changes and becomes richer the longer you let this dish set. So if you want to cook it in advance of a meal, it just gets better in the fridge!
JJ Gordon