Pea and Leek Crostini

 

I'm going out on a limb here to say that I prefer this over avocado on toast, it's fresh and green with a subtle mint flavour and the parmesan cheese gives a slight savoury sharpness to the blended peas... although I am tempted to replace the parmesan cheese with blue cheese or vigorously crumble blue cheese over top and have the slices of radishes on the side. I have also made this using green onions instead of leeks and it still captures its remarkable taste and flavour.  

Pea and Leek Crostini

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serves 8

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 leeks, white and pale green parts, thinly sliced

1/4 cup (60ml) water

salt and pepper, to taste

1 cup (150g) frozen peas

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup (25g) grated parmesan cheese

4 mint leaves, chopped

baguette slices or bread, for toasting

sliced radishes, for serving 

extra mint leaves, for serving

Heat oil in a non-stick frypan on medium heat. Add slices of leeks and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Add water and reduce heat to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If the pan becomes dry and the leek is not yet soft add another 1/4 cup (60ml) water. Cook until water has evaporated. 

Meanwhile, blanch the peas for 3 minutes in boiling water, until bright green but softened. Drain, then add to the pan with the leek and stir.

Spoon leek and pea mixture into a food processor. Add the tablespoon of olive oil and pulse until coarse. 

Add the parmesan and mint and process again. The mixture should remain a little chunky. Toast the baguette or bread slices. Spread the pea and leek mixture onto hot toast. Garnish with radishes or mint leaves.  

Leon ~ Fast & Free

The creators of Leon have this new wonderful cookbook ~ Fast & Free. A cookbook to which they felt they should have wrote 12 years ago. Their recent inspiration, Paleo, and Jane's travels in Southern Europe, Southwest Asia and beyond. When Leon first started they were probably seen as radical... a bit alternative however times have changed and our way of eating... eating better, has changed, becoming more mainstream.   

Recipes are gluten free, dairy free, and refined sugar free as well some recipes may be vegetarian, vegan, and nut free. Although they carry the main principles of paleo they have interpreted their own version of paleo... called Paleon. A bit of play on words there. Their premise, as with all their cookbooks, is to try and make it easy for everyone to eat well. Something anyone can appreciate. If you like... love food then the Leon cookbooks are for you.

All recipes have a Nutritional Key which gives you a quick reference if the recipe is applicable for you and your eating choices. They range from Low Glycemic Load, Low Saturated Fat, Paleon, Nut-free, Vegetarian, Vegan, Contains Added Natural Unrefined Sugar, and No Added Sugar. 

The book discusses free from, the term which represents when a recipe is free of something or an ingredient such as diary free... free from dairy. You get the idea. They have included a 4 page fold out called Your Kitchen Cupboard, the essential ingredients to stock your kitchen with.  Within this 307 page cookbook there are 7 chapters, Good Mornings, For Starters, Everyday Easy, Speedy Suppers, Meals For A Crowd, Bits On The Side, and Treat Yourself. There is something for everyone although a few recipes may send one on a culinary hunt, depends on where you live and if a shop in your area carries certain things like... chestnut flour, for example. Still, do not let that deter you. 

The recipe I would like to share is from the For Starters chapter. Even though these are being toted as a starter I feel you could serve them with grilled salmon or chicken, grilled halloumi cheese or tofu or a salad. Besides they sound delicious! This recipe is low in saturated fat, nut-free, vegan, vegetarian, and no sugar added.

Spiced Spinach, Pea & Potato Cakes

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Prep time: 5 mins  • Cook Time: 20 mins

2 tablespoons gram flour, plus extra for dusting

1/4 cup cooked spinach

1/2 lb potatoes, mashed

2/3 cup peas

1 green chile, chopped

1 teaspoon finely grated ginger

2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

a pinch of ground turmeric

a pinch of ground cardamon

a pinch of garam masala

canola oil, for frying

salt and ground black pepper

1. Dry-fry the gram flour until lightly toasted. Place in a large bowl. Squeeze out any excess moisture from the spinach, season, and chop. Add to the gram flour along with the rest of the ingredients except for the oil. Season and mix together well.

2. Shape into small cakes and dust with a little gram flour. Shallow-fry in a little oil for 3 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned. Drain in a paper towel before serving.

The sunny long weekend came and went and now the midweek rain is falling.  - JD   

Ham and Pea Soup

I never really liked ham and pea soup. However I got it in my head last Friday to make it for dinner. My stubbornness didn't get the better part of me that day or did it! It was supper easy and most of the prep was minimal. I managed to do it earlier in the day.  

Ham and Pea Soup

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1 tablespoon of butter

1 onion, sliced

1 leek, trimmed and sliced

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon of tarragon

4 cups low sodium organic vegetable stock

450 grams frozen peas, thawed or fresh peas, shelled

7 ounces/200grams lean ham, chopped

4 tablespoons heavy cream

Salt and pepper to season

Melt the butter in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes until slightly softened. Stir in the leek and continue to stir and cook for another 2 minutes. At this point the smell of the onion and leeks sautéing together is wonderful! Add the vegetable stock, peas, ham, bay leaf and tarragon. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer for another 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Remove the bay leaf. That is always fun. It's like searching for buried treasure. Let cool for 10 minutes.

Place about half of the soup into a food processor or blender. and blend until smooth. Returning the blended soup back into the pot with the rest of the soup, stir in the cream and cook over low heat for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve with a sprig of fresh tarragon on top. I did the oldest trick in the book by drizzling fresh cream on top. 

I made parmesan shortbread to serve with the soup. I quite enjoyed this soup and would absolutely like to try and make a mint and pea soup. One very reminiscent of the lovely Fortnum and Mason's soup I tasted last summer. - JW