Split pea soup - left over ham bone

This year we feasted on a honey baked ham in addition to the turkey for Thanksgiving...and I was the lucky one who was able to take the bone home to make one of our favorite soups. I used Martha Stewart's basic recipe and tweaked a bit.

Split Pea soup with Ham Bone

1 medium onion, chopped
5 celery stalks, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
5 cubed small potatoes
1 tbsp thyme
14.5 oz chicken stock
5 cups water
16 oz split peas - rinsed and sorted
ham bone

 1. in a dutch oven, heat olive oil and saute onion, celery, carrots and potatoes. Season with Thyme, pepper and a pinch of sea salt. Cook until soft.
2. Add in the stock, water, peas and ham bone. Bring to a boil then simmer, partially covered, for about an hour - until the peas are soft.
3. Remove the ham bone and cut off meat (no fat) and replace in the soup. Cook for an additional few minutes to heat through. Add in lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.

Croutons
Cut off crusts of 4 slices of whole wheat bread. Cube. Melt 2 tbsp of butter in a large skillet. Toast the bread and toss for about 7 minutes until crispy.