June 17, 2024
Peas Please!
by Linda Dansbury

I feel like I can never have too many peas. They are so delicious raw - all by themselves or dipped in something delicious. Here are a few things we enjoyed recently:

Radish, turnips, peas, mint, chives - made the Radishes with Goat Cheese Dip and enjoyed the raw veggies as an appetizer. So easy to make and delicious - the recipe says to use a processor to mix the dip, but it comes together by hand easily, with less to clean up.

Peas, mint - my favorite way to cook snow/snap peas is in a pan with a little olive oil or butter (or sesame oil writes Farmer Derek) - it only takes 2-3 minutes in a hot pan for them to be a perfect texture. They are amazing with just a bit of sea salt added at the end. This week I julienned a few mint leaves and tossed them in along with a few chili flakes after cooking was finished.

Swiss chard, garlic scapes - I have talked about this simple method of enjoying greens before - chop up chard stems and scapes - add them to pan heated with olive oil. A sprinkle of chili flakes is a nice addition. Saute for a couple of minutes then add the chopped chard leaves, or any greens you want to add. Cook until desired tenderness. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy with or without a squeeze of lemon.

Escarole, scapes, parsley - made an easy, but delicious dinner: cooked Italian sausage in a pan - and removed to a bowl. Added olive oil to same pan and added chopped scapes and chopped up escarole. When nearly cooked, added a can of white beans and mixed together well. Added sausage back into pan, heated everything through. Added salt and pepper. Removed from heat and tossed in a lot of chopped fresh parsley. Grated parmesan cheese over all and enjoyed with a loaf of crusty bread!