Pea super

A bowl of super homemade pea soup

A few days ago I was feeling rather peckish and knew this would be the worst possible time to walk to the shops and buy something for lunch; there's far too much temptation in there! My usual lunchtime options weren't available at home, so I started to think about other possibilities instead.

Thankfully my store cupboard came up with the answer: frozen peas, onions, stock cubes and herbs, so it didn't take long to come up with a tasty pea soup. It took just 20 minutes to plate up the perfect antidote to a dull winter's day.

Ingredients

  • 1 litre vegetable stock (a stock cube dissolved in hot water is fine)
  • 1 medium onion, sliced thinly
  • 750g frozen peas (I used a bag of petit pois)
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 4 heaped teaspoons dried mint (or fresh when in season)
  • A swirl of cream, low fat creme fraiche, or natural yoghurt per bowl (optional)
Method

  • Pour the vegetable stock into a large pan and add the onion and peas
  • Add the black pepper to taste and bring up to the boil, then turn down the heat to a slow simmer for 15 minutes
  • Stir the mint into the soup about 5 minutes before it's ready
  • Whizz the soup together with a blender and pour into warmed bowls
  • Add the cream, creme fraiche, or natural yoghurt if using and serve with crusty bread
Serves 6 generously.

Facebook question asking for favourite frozen pea recipes

I'll probably make half recipe next time to last us a couple of days. The pois and mint combination delivers quite a sweet soup, so I'll also experiment with the cheaper, earthier tasting options from the freezer cabinet in future.

However, I was still chuffed with my first time effort (with a huge thumbs up from NAH as it reminded him of happy childhood memories of the soup his godmother made) and posted the above message on Facebook. It's great to have my friends responses to share:
  • Green pea and parsley hummus from Sandy in response to my musing on trying to make a pea-based hummus next time
  • I wondered about a pea-based guacamole - I plan to experiment with my usual guacamole mash-up and substitute peas for the avocado
  • Grace suggested Butter paneer masala with peas - I like the look of this recipe
  • Judy suggested pea, red onion and jalapeno jelly - I've asked her for her favourite recipe
  • Sharon recommended them French style and suggested the following:
"...sweat a finely chopped onion in a goodly dollop of butter, add chopped lettuce and wilt it, add frozen peas till just cooked, black pepper. Yum. If desired add lardons in the first stage (even more yum)."
Lots more inspiration for lunch! What would you make?

Comments

  1. Flighty7 February 2020 at 14:00

    That looks and sounds delicious, ideal for this time of year. xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP7 February 2020 at 16:44

      Thanks Flighty - I'm going to make some more this weekend :)

      Delete
  2. Janet, The Queen of Seaford7 February 2020 at 20:39

    I am not a cooked pea fan, though love fresh peas in a salad-just love the way they pop. I will have to rethink the pea soup when the mint is added, that sounds lovely.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP8 February 2020 at 09:08

      Ooh yes, there's nothing that beats fresh peas Janet!

      Delete

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