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Posts Tagged ‘peas’

Peas, Broad Beans & Chorizo with Mint

Posted in Food, Side dish, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 23 April 2018| Leave a Comment »

Broad Beans, Peas, Chorizo & Mint

If you are yet to be convinced of the merits of frozen broad beans then surely this will convert you. A dish sure to become a regular feature in our kitchen as we can think of loads of mains to pair it with. Slipping the skins off the beans is a bit of a fiddle but definitely worth it and not the worst kitchen job – that would be cleaning mussels or mushrooms.

Peas, broad beans & chorizo with mint – serves 4 to 6

  • 250g frozen peas
  • 250g frozen baby broad beans
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 150g chorizo sausage, cut into small chunks
  • a good squeeze of lemon juice
  • leaves from 5 sprigs of mint

Cook the peas and beans in separate pans of boiling salted water until tender, then drain and remove the skins from the broad beans.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the chorizo until golden. Add the peas and beans and heat through. Season, add the lemon juice and mint, then serve.

(Original recipe from Food from Plenty by Diana Henry, Mitchell Beazley, 2010.)

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Pimp Your Peas with Roasted Shallots & Mint

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Side dish, tagged , , , , , , , , on 2 January 2018| 1 Comment »

Peas with roasted shallots

This is a handy side dish for a roast dinner and adds a bit of interest to a bag of frozen peas, which our freezer is never without.

Peas with Roasted Shallots & Mint – serves 8

  • 550g shallots, peeled and halved
  • 85g golden caster sugar
  • 1 kg frozen peas
  • a bunch of fresh mint, chopped
  • 3 tbsp good quality olive oil
  • juice of ½ lemon

Heat your oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

Toss the shallots in the sugar. Heat a large ovenproof frying pan until hot, then add the sugary shallots. Cook for a few minutes to caramelise the outside, then transfer to the oven for 5 mins to cook through.

Cook the peas in boiling salted water for 2 mins until tender, drain and mix with the shallots, mint, olive oil and lemon juice. Season and serve.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food.)

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Pea & Parmesan Risotto

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Italian, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , on 3 August 2017| Leave a Comment »

Lemony pea risotto

A standby, reliable dish; something we make for weekend lunches that is simple, tasty and comforting. We’re always surprised at how good it is!

Wine Suggestion: a fresh, zesty white is our usual choice. Vermentino from  Tuscany like the Poggio ai Ginepri IGP Bianco works a treat, or a crisp Sauvignon Blanc or a Chablis would be great too.

Pea & Parmesan risotto – serves 4

  • 1.2 litres chicken stock/veg stock
  • 100g unsalted butter
  • 2 medium onions, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 225g arborio rice
  • 100g frozen peas
  • 50g Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Put the stock into a saucepan and bring to the boil, then keep over a low heat.

Melt the butter in a sauté pan, and the onion and garlic, then cook for 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir over a low heat until translucent and starting to soften. Increase the heat to medium and begin adding the hot stock, a ladle at a time. Keep adding ladles of stock when the one before has been completely absorbed by the rice.

Continue like this for about 15-20 minutes or until the rice is al dente.

Tip the frozen peas into the risotto and stir. Keep stirring for about 3 minutes or until the peas have defrosted and the rice is bubbling. Finally, stir in the Parmesan and serve immediately with a few shards of Parmesan over the top.

(Original recipe by Tana Ramsey in BBC Good Food Magazine, July, 2007.)

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Salmon with Greens & Crème Fraîche

Posted in Fish, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 22 May 2017| Leave a Comment »

Salmon with greens & creme fraiche

Spring is such a lovely time for fresh ingredients, encapsulated by greens like peas and broad beans. It’s broad beans with pretty much everything in our house at the minute. Serve with steamed new potatoes or mash.

Wine Suggestion: We went with a fresh Chablis that had a similar Spring vitality to the food; a Domaine Gueguen from 2015 which had hints of white flowers and smokiness with green apple skins. It was crisp with a wonderful chalky, flinty, limestone character – a good match.

Salmon with greens & crème fraîche – serves 4

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 leek, thinly sliced
  • 250ml chicken stock or fish stock
  • 100g crème fraîche
  • 140g frozen peas
  • 140g frozen broad beans
  • 4 skinless salmon fillets
  • small bunch of chives, snipped

Heat the oil in a deep frying pan with a lid. Cook the leek until soft but not coloured, about 5-10 minutes. Pour in the stock and simmer until reduced slightly, then add the crème fraîche and season. Cook for another minute.

Add the peas and beans, then gently add the salmon fillets, nestling them in amongst the veg. Turn down to a simmer, then cover and cook for 12-15 minutes or until cooked through. Sprinkle with chives and serve with mash or steamed new potatoes.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Pesto Lasagne

Posted in Food, Pasta, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 4 April 2017| 5 Comments »

Pesto Lasagne

A really quick and easy lasagne full of Spring flavours. You don’t have to buy fresh pesto from the fridge as this tends to be more oily and makes this dish very rich; we successfully used a jar from a shelf instead.

Wine suggestion: A grassy European styled Sauvignon Blanc which tends to have a longer, if cooler, growing season is a good match. Avoid the big flavoured Sauvignon’s with the kiwi / tinned asparagus flavours that you might typically find from NZ and Chile as these flavours clash a bit. Exceptions to this always exist like the Dog Point Marlborough Sauvignon, but a good Touraine or Sancerre would be our match.

Pesto Lasagne – serves 4 to 6

  • 190g jar of pesto
  • 500g tub mascarpone
  • 200g bag spinach, roughly chopped
  • 250g frozen peas
  • small pack of basil
  • small pack of mint
  • 12 fresh lasagne sheets
  • 85g Parmesan, finely grated
  • 50g pine nuts
  • Green salad & garlic bread to serve

Heat the oven to 180C/160 fan/gas 4.

Put the pesto, half the mascarpone and 250ml vegetable stock in a saucepan. Heat, stirring, until smooth and bubbling. Add the spinach and peas and cook for another few minutes until the spinach has wilted and the peas have defrosted. Add the herbs and season but go easy with the salt.

Put a third of this pesto mixture into the base of a baking dish (approx. 18 x 25cm). Top with 4 lasagne sheets, then repeat with 2 more layers of sauce and lasagne sheets, finishing with a layer of pasta. Mix some milk into the remaining mascarpone to make a sauce consistency, season then pour over the top of the dish. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and pine nuts, then bake for 35-40 minutes or until brown on the top and bubbling. Scatter over a few basil leaves before serving.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food Magazine, February 2014.)

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Herb-roast Chicken

Posted in Chicken, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 14 November 2016| Leave a Comment »

Herb roast chicken

This is an easy solution for feeding a crowd and almost everyone likes roast chicken. All you need is some new potatoes or creamy mash on the side. We love the fresh tarragon with the peas but you could use mint if you prefer. The combination of the peas, shallots, herbs and pancetta really add extra depth to the chicken and lift even ordinary chickens to feast-like levels. Of course, if the budget allows, get a good, free-range one as the extra flavour is really worth it.

Wine Suggestion: As this dish is a bit richer than your standard roast chicken it demands more than most white wines can deliver. We find Pinot Noir a good choice. This time we chose the Justin Girardin Santenay 1er Clos Rousseau and the earthy flavours danced with the salty, crispy pancetta and sweet peas. The tarragon made it all the more reminiscent of holidays in France.

Herb-Roast Chicken – serves 8-10 (easily halved)

  • 200g cubetti di pancetta
  • 800g shallots, trimmed
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 chickens (about 1.5kg each)
  • 500ml hot chicken stock
  • 800g peas (frozen will be fine)
  • small pack tarragon, roughly chopped

Heat oven to 190C/170C/gas 5.

Fry the pancetta gently in a heavy frying pan until crisp – if you start with a cold pan you shouldn’t need to add any oil. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the shallots to the pan and fry in the pancetta fat for 10-15 minutes or until golden and starting to soften. Tip the shallots into a very large roasting tin.

Rub the olive oil over the chickens and season well with salt and pepper, then place the chickens into the roasting tin with the shallots. Roast for about 1 hour 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Remove the chickens from the tin and cover with foil.

Put the roasting tin directly onto the hob and stir in the stock. Bubble for a few minutes and scrape any sticky bits off the bottom of the tin with a wooden spoon. Add the peas, pancetta and most of the tarragon to the stock and bubble for a few minutes or until the peas are cooked, then season.

Meanwhile carve the chicken into large pieces. Transfer the peas to a warm serving platter and serve the chicken on top with the rest of the tarragon sprinkled over.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food Magazine, April 2010.)

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Summer Risotto

Posted in Food, Italian, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 14 September 2016| 2 Comments »

Summer risotto

On a balmy summer evening we podded local broad beans and picked some french beans from the vines in our back yard. We used a stock made from a previously roasted chicken which was subsequently used to poach chicken fillets for a Coronation Chicken. The only thing out of place were the frozen peas, but we think unless you pick the pods fresh and eat them almost immediately, frozen is often best. This is based on a risotto primavera or Spring risotto which usually contains asparagus.

Wine Suggestion: a fresh, summery Godello caught our eye. The La Sonrisa de Tares from Bierzo had enough weight to balance the starchy creaminess and depth of the Parmesan while a lovely textural freshness and summery zing made the beans and peas sing with all their fresh flavours.

Summer Risotto – serves 4

  • 200g shelled broad beans (you will need about 800g of broad beans in their pods to get this quantity or you can use frozen broad beans, defrosted)
  • 2 large shallots, finely chopped
  • 4 scallions, trimmed and finely chopped
  • 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 250g green beans, trimmed and cut into short lengths
  • 1.5 litres home-made chicken stock (you might not need it all)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 80g butter
  • 350g Carnaroli or other risotto rice
  • 100ml dry white wine
  • 140g frozen peas
  • 100g Parmesan, finely grated

Start by double podding the broad beans so you are left with bright green beans. To do this just blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes, then drain and squeeze to remove the papery skin. If you’re using frozen beans you might be able to remove the skins when defrosted without having to blanch first.

Put the stock into a large pot and bring to a simmer.

Heat the oil and 40g butter in a wide heavy pan with a lid. Cook the shallot, scallions & garlic for a few minutes until soft and transparent but don’t let them brown. Add the rice and keep stirring for a few minutes until the rice is hot and starting to sizzle, then pour in the wine. Continue to stir until the wine has evaporated.

Now start gradually adding the stock, a ladleful at a time. Only add another ladleful when the previous one has been absorbed by the rice. Continue stirring and adding the stock for 14 minutes, then add the broad beans and peas with some salt and black pepper. Meanwhile, cook the green beans in the simmering stock for 6 minutes or until soft, then add these to the rice too. Continue stirring and adding stock until the risotto has a creamy texture and the rice is soft but retains a little bite.

Remove the pan from the heat and add half the parmesan, the rest of the butter and one last splash of stock to retain the moisture. Put the lid on the pan and leave to rest for a few minutes off the heat. Serve with the rest of the Parmesan sprinkled over the top.

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Fabulous Home-made Gnocchi

Posted in Food, Italian, Potato, tagged , , , , , , , on 16 June 2014| 2 Comments »

Gnocchi with peas

Gnocchi – where have you been all our lives? So much easier than we anticipated!

Wine suggestion: We tried a delicious Langhe Nebbiolo by Luigi Pira from Piedmont in Italy which had a great balance between light weight, depth of flavour, dancing acidity and a characterful earthiness. Gnocchi is refined and elegant but also earthy and rustic and the food-wine combo matched really well.

Gnocchi – serves 4

  • 2 large floury potatoes
  • 50g ricotta cheese
  • 90g plain flour
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1 thyme sprig, leaves only
  • sea salt and freshly ground white pepper
  • Grated Parmesan – to serve

For the Sauce: 

  • olive oil
  • black pepper
  • 150g frozen peas, defrosted
  • butter
  • 1 thyme sprig, leaves only
  • zest of 1 lemon

Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6.

Bake the potatoes for 1-1¼ hours until tender. While the potatoes are still warm, remove the flesh from the skin and mash until smooth (use a potato ricer if you have one).

Mix in the ricotta, a pinch of salt and white pepper and the flour. Make a well in the middle, add the beaten egg and start to combine the mixture with floured hands. Work in the thyme leaves and continue until you have a smooth dough but don’t overwork or it will become too dense .

Cut the dough in half and shape each piece into a long cigar shape about 1.5 cm thick. Use the back of a floured table knife to cut each length into 2cm pieces to make ‘pillows’ of gnocchi.

Gently press each gnocchi in the middle with a floured finger.

Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the gnocchi, tilting the pan from side to side briefly to stop them sticking together, them simmer for just 1½-2 minutes or until they start to float.

Drain the gnocchi and leave to steam dry for a couple of minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a frying pan over a medium heat and add a bit of olive oil. Add the gnocchi to the hot pan with a pinch of salt and black pepper and sauté for a minute or two on each side until coloured.

Add the peas to the pan with a knob of butter and the thyme leaves. Toss to heat through, then add the lemon zest. Serve with the grated Parmesan.

(Original recipe from Gordon Ramsay’s Ultimate Cookery Course, Hodder & Stoughton, 2012.)

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Keema with Peas

Posted in Asian, Indian, Lamb, tagged , , , , , , , on 2 June 2014| 2 Comments »

Keema with peas

This is a simple and cheap curry to whip up and it’s full of flavour. Grab some naan breads from your local takeaway and serve with some mango chutney and extra yogurt.

Keema with Peas – to serve 4

  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 4cm piece ginger, grated
  • 2 green chillies
  • 3 tbsp oil
  • 500g lamb mince
  • 2 tbsp garam masala
  • 2 tsp turmeric
  • 200g chopped tomatoes (from a can or use 2 medium fresh tomatoes)
  • 2 tbsp natural yogurt
  • 200g frozen peas
  • 1 small bunch coriander, chopped

Chop the onion, garlic, ginger and chillies in a food processor.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the mixture until very fragrant. Add the mince and fry until starting to brown, stirring to break up the lumps.

Add the spices and fry for a minute before adding the tomatoes. Bring to a simmer, cook for a minute, then stir in the yogurt and some salt and pepper. Add a splash of water if the mixture looks dry, then cook for half an hour.

Add the frozen peas and cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the coriander.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Zesty Whiting with crushed potatoes & peas

Posted in Fish, Food, Healthy, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 2 March 2013| Leave a Comment »

The combination of flavours and textures made this a delicious Wednesday night feast. It’s also really healthy and low in calories (305 to be exact, so you can even squeeze it in if you’re on the 5:2 diet). You could use haddock or cod but whiting is much cheaper and tastes just as good.

Zesty Whiting with Crushed Potatoes & Peas – to serve 4

  • 600g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks – we used Nicola which gave an interesting texture but floury mashing ones would be good too
  • 140g frozen peas
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • juice and zest of ½ a lemon
  • 1 tbsp capers
  • 2 tbsp snipped chives
  • 4 fillets of chunky white fish (about 120g each)
  • 2 tbsp flour

Boil the potatoes until tender, adding the peas for the final minute of cooking. Drain and roughly crush together, adding lots of salt and pepper and about a tablespoon of the oil.

To make the dressing mix 1 tbsp of the oil with the lemon juice and zest, the capers, the chives and some seasoning.

Dust the fish in the flour, tapping off any excess, and season. Heat a small splash of oil in non-stick frying pan and fry the fish for a couple of minutes on each side, or until cooked, then add the dressing to the pan to warm through.

Serve with some steamed broccoli if you like.

Wine Suggestion: Picpoul de Pinet from the Languedoc is good value and has a nice, refreshing zesty flavour that is a great match for fish. Despite coming from a warm area, this wine maintains good acidity and minerality and is well worth seeking out.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Home-made Fish Fingers with Mushy Peas

Posted in Fish, Food, tagged , , , , , on 19 October 2012| Leave a Comment »

These are super-simple and a hundred times better than the frozen variety. You can use any firm, skinless, white fish – we used hake.

Home-made fish fingers with mushy peas – to serve 4

  • 600g firm, skinless white fish
  • 50g plain flour, seasoned
  • 1 large egg, lightly whisked
  • 200g fine fresh breadcrumbs
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 400g frozen peas
  • knob of butter
  • zest 1 lemon, then cut into wedges
  • mint

Cut the fish into 12 fingers, about 3cm thick. Put the seasoned flour, egg, and breadcrumbs into three separate bowls. Dust the fish pieces in the flour first, then coat with the egg and finally a good coating of breadcrumbs. Put on a plate and chill for 15 minutes before cooking.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Fry the fish fingers for about 8 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Meanwhile, cook the peas in a small pan of boiling water until really tender, about 4 minutes. Drain then tip into a bowl with the butter, zest and mint and roughly mash. Season and keep warm.

Serve the fish fingers with a dollop of peas and some lemon wedges.

Wine Suggestion: Try a light Sauvignon Blanc, such as from the Touraine in France’s Loire Valley, which should be fresh and fruity with a slight grassiness.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Spring Pea Risotto

Posted in Food, Italian, Sauvignon Blanc, Vegetarian, Wine, tagged , , , , , , on 2 June 2012| Leave a Comment »

A bit of a celebration of peas. The original recipe also suggested topping it off with pea shoots at the end but unfortunately we couldn’t find any today. Not as tasty as some of our richer risottos (with much more butter and cheese) but very nice all the same.

Pea risotto – to serve 4

  • 50g butter
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 300g cooked fresh peas
  • 1.7 litres hot vegetable stock (you might not need it all)
  • 350g risotto rice
  • 200ml white wine
  • 25g Parmesan, grated

Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and cook gently for about 10 minutes until very soft but not coloured.

Whizz about a third of the peas in food processor with a ladle of stock to make a purée.

Stir the rice into the onion, turn up the heat, then sizzle and stir for about a minute. Add the wine and bubble until it has all be absorbed, stirring the whole time. Continue cooking this way, adding a ladle of stock at a time and stirring continuously until the rice is tender and creamy. It should take between 20 and 30 minutes.

Stir in the pea purée, the remaining peas, Parmesan and seasoning, then turn off the heat and leave to stand for a few minutes. Drizzle with a splash of good olive oil before serving if you like.

Wine Suggestion: A Sauvignon Blanc should complement the fresh green pea flavour you can often find similar characteristics in the wine. We prefer the more subtle versions from the Loire Valley but there are some excellent examples from Marlborough in New Zealand that don’t go too over the top, like Morton Estate.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Crushed pea & broad bean crostini

Posted in Food, Uncategorized, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 25 July 2011| Leave a Comment »

We will definitely do this recipe again; the flavours burst in your mouth and taste so summery. Our inspiration was our friend Carol who had some pea puree with radishes at a lovely Sunday lunch recently and Sheila from Gimmetherecipe posted a similar recipe and reminded us to try it. Such an easy summer starter.

Crostini with pea purée rocket & broad beans – to serve 6

  • 200g double-podded broad beans
  • 400g frozen peas
  • 85g butter
  • 100g natural yogurt
  • leaves from a small bunch of mint
  • 1 ciabatta, sliced
  • 1 small bunch dill, chopped
  • couple handfuls of rocket
  • 140g radishes, thinly sliced
  • 85g pecorino cheese
  • extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
  1. Cook the broad beans for 4 minutes until just tender. Drain, , cool under cold running water, then drain and set aside. In the same pan, fry the peas in half the butter until just cooked. Allow to cool, the blitz in the food processor (or use a hand blender) with the yogurt, mint and seasoning.
  2. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Melt the rest of the butter in a small pan, stir in the dill, then brush over the ciabatta slices. Bake for 10-12 minutes until crisp and golden.
  3. Spread some pea purée onto each slice, top with rocket, broad beans and radishes. Shave some pecorino over the top. Drizzle with oil before serving.
(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)


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Easy Lemon & Pea Risotto

Posted in Food, Healthy, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , on 7 March 2011| 2 Comments »

An easy and healthy after-work dish done in under half an hour and using things you probably have in the cupboard. We had to buy a lemon, and only because the one on the shelf looked a bit past it.

Serves 2, but easily doubled

  • 200g risotto rice
  • 850ml hot vegetable stock
  • 50g frozen peas
  • 50g Parmesan, grated, plus a bit more for over the top at the end
  • juice and zest of 1/2 a lemon

Heat a large saucepan over a medium heat, then toast the rice, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.

Add one ladle of hot stock and keep stirring until absorbed. The first ladle will be really quick.

Add the rest of the stock, a ladle at a time, until the rice is almost cooked, keep stirring it all the time. It will take about 20 minutes for you to stir in all your stock.

Stir in the peas and cook for 3-5 minutes and remove the pan from the heat.

Add the cheese, lemon juice, seasoning and then stir. Stick the lid on and let it rest for a minute.

Serve in bowls with the zest and a bit more Parmesan over the top.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

Wine suggestion: Have a glass of something white if you have some leftover from the weekend.

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We can’t be gourmands every day!

Posted in Fish, Food, tagged , , , , on 12 November 2010| Leave a Comment »

When you a you’ve had a long week and Thursday night needs some easy comfort food – fish fingers, peas and home-made chips (or little potato things). Serve with tartare sauce and a glass of white wine 😉

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