Give Peas a Chance

 

a culinary thrill seeker, I’ll try nearly anything. But I’m not a fan of peas. Not the mushy ones in cans. But when a friend said she got a pallet full of peas and would share, I thought “Challenge On.” I was on a pea mission.

Disclaimer: Decades ago I was trying to impress a woman in my husband’s family who announced she was serving peas. I got a spoonful and voiced enthusiasm. She asked my sister-in-law if she liked them and sis proclaimed confidently and firmly how the cook knew she hated peas and would not be eating them. There was no way I would have said that then or now. So, I have this thing about peas. But, one can always be open minded.

               Disclaimer 2: I have a more open relationship with frozen peas, which can add color to a cool salad or rice dish. I actually am quite fond of snow and sugar snap peas. It’s just canned peas, mushy in my childhood memory, that challenge me.

Here's how I opened up cans of opportunity and gave peas a chance:

·        I passed a can to a friend who avoids canned food, but gifted food is another matter. He soon sent a photo of his lentil, rice and pea concoction.

·        Avocado Thing – It used to be blasphemy to sneak mashed green peas into guacamole. I did a bit of this simply to stretch an avocado and bring the calorie count down. I like a lot of spice in there, so I actually didn’t notice anything amiss. More importantly, neither did my husband.

·        I happened to be invited to a series of summer potlucks. I made big batches of pea salad for each one. They seemed to go over well.

·        Some blended peas got cooked into some soups, etc. with no cause for alarm.

·        Curried Peas – When I found a curried peas with coconut milk recipe I thought it would smell wonderful over jasmine rice. Turns out, I’d used up all the peas. Then, guess what! My friend gave me a few more cans. When I was shopping for coconut milk, I figured a touch of pina colada mix my husband had in the fridge would work just as well. Let me tell you, if you are gifted peas, make this dish.

For pea lovers and pumpkin hoarders: “Homemade*ish: Recipes and Cooking Tips That Keep it Real” is funny and brilliant Lauren McDuffie shows how to transform some quickie grocery into gourmet triumphs. You’re in control. You’re the chef and you’re loving these results. Evry page is a delight as you fashion canned biscuit dough into Citrus Crunch Doughuts and crisp cornbread into a base for butterbeans and tomatoes.

Try these timely delights.

Pasta Rags with Peas, Burrata and Crisped Prosciutto calls for frozen peas. A picturesque layered dish uses torn lasagna noodles as the “rags.” It’s a conversation piece before you even take a bite.

Pumpkin Watch: Our seasonal lookout finds this author hoarding canned pumpkin in season. She mixed one can of unsweetened pumpkin with a box of spice cake mix for Pumpkin Patch Muffins with Salted Honey Butter. Before baking, she showers crunchy, sparkly turbinado sugar on top for a bakery look and addictive texture. The salted butter combines cinnamon and honey.     

Darragh Doiron is a Port Arthur area foodie who gave peas a chance and liked it. Share your pumpkin spice latte season finds with her via panews@panews.com