Place the carrot, onion and garlic into a food processor. Pulse until well diced. You can also dice the carrot, onion and garlic by hand but I prefer to let the food processor do all the heavy lifting.

In a 4- or 5-qt. slow cooker, combine all ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours, until peas are tender. Taste and add additional salt and pepper as needed. Remove bay leaf and serve.