The Siren Song of the English Pea at the Studio City Farmers Market

Last week it was fava beans, this week English peas. Things that I did not have plans for, but could not resist because they are not only beautiful, but their seasons are short and in a few weeks both will be gone from the market. Fava beans are a lot of work to shell, and best eaten when they are young and don’t have that extra tough shell on each individual bean that needs to be removed before cooking. I brought home what I thought was enough fava beans to feed an army, only to discover after 15 minutes of shelling that I was going to barely feed myself, let alone anyone else, with what I had. In the end it was worth it because they were young and delicious and I was able to eat them raw with a little lemon, olive oil, black pepper and shaved Parmigiano Reggiano for a nice light lunch the next day.

But oh the task of shelling those favas haunts me. Hence, when I strolled through the market yesterday I had no problem resisting the siren call of the English peas, closed up tightly in their bright green jackets. That was until I walked by my friends Yer and Kim at Fresno Evergreen who were patiently shelling peas behind their tables and dropping them into a large plastic bin for sale. How could I say no when all of the work had been done for me, and the only thing left was to bag them and carry them away? So, I gave into the peas and brought what I was certain would feed a few others and me. But once again, I had no idea what I was going to do with them.

As you might have guessed, I have a few cookbooks at home, so I cracked open one of my favorites, Sundays at Moosewood, and believe it or not the first page that the book opened to was page 26, a recipe for East African Sweet Pea soup. The peas were meant to be! 

As I sit here writing this, I am finishing up my third bowl of soup (hey, it’s a small bowl) and have to share this recipe with you so that when you succumb to the lure of the English pea you will know exactly what to do with it. The recipe is simple in spite of the long list of spices. The other great thing about this recipe is that it gives you an excuse to visit Brian over at World Flavors (another booth that calls out to me every time I pass by) to pick up the spices. Enjoy!

East African Sweet Pea Soup

From Sundays at Moosewood by the Moosewood Collective

2 cups chopped onions

1 teaspoon minced or pressed garlic

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

½ teaspoon grated fresh peeled ginger root

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne or other ground dried chilies

1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds

1 teaspoon ground cumin seeds

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon turmeric

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 white sweet potato, diced (about 2 cups)

3 ½ cups water

3 cups fresh green peas (or 1 pound frozen)

Sauté the onions and garlic gently in oil in a covered pot, stirring frequently, for 5 to 10 minutes, until the onions are just translucent. Mix in the ginger, salt and all the spices and sauté for a couple of minutes, stirring often. Add the tomatoes and sweet potato. Stir well. Add 1 ½ cups water and stir to dissolve the spices and deglaze the bottom of the pot. Bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 5 minutes. Add 2 cups of the peas and simmer, covered, for another 10 minutes, or until the peas and sweet potato are tender.

Remove the soup from the heat and add the remaining 2 cups of water. Puree the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. Return to the pot, add the remaining cup of peas, and gently reheat.