Pea soup: love it, or hate it? What you might not realize is that there is a world of taste and flavor in lentils and split peas that goes far beyond the ham-infused green paste that not everyone adores. If you’ve never picked up the bag of red lentils sitting next to those beloved or dreaded split peas, this Lentil & Chestnut Soup from Serious Eats is a seriously delicious lentil-starter recipe. If you can’t find chestnuts, almonds make a decent substitution. To put this recipe into 3 Guiding Star territory, all we had to do was sub in low-sodium broth: believe me, with all the flavor the vegetables bring to the stock pot, you won’t miss the salt.