Photo via Getty Images
ENGLISH PEA BASICS
Buying: Look for bright green, blemish-free pods that feel full for their size. Once shelled, these sweeties freeze beautifully, so stock up when the season strikes, and enjoy them throughout the year.
Cooking: With their tender, verdant pop, peas don’t need much to shine; serve them raw or simply blanched. Paired with a cream sauce or prosciutto, their sweetness provides an ideal counterpoint.
PEAS TIME
Heralding spring with an emerald wave, these vine-grown legumes start appearing on market tables in late April, with pea greens signaling their arrival in the weeks before. They’ll hit their stride in May and June and then disappear again.
AROUND RVA
Nama [delivery available]: Kumbh matar features peas and mushrooms swimming in a creamy cashew-based vegan sauce, with tomatoes and a hint of chile spice.
Gersi [curbside pickup and delivery available]: Spring pea and fava bean salad combines fresh peas, fava beans and asparagus with cherry tomatoes and Italian celery, finished with lemon and Pecorino.
Bacchus [takeout available beginning April 2]: Penne with Gorgonzola cream and petite peas is a classic dish that begs for a glass of Sterling Vineyards chardonnay.
“Peas are delicate … they easily are drowned out by bolder flavors.” —Donnie Glass, chef and co-owner of Grisette
Megan and Donnie Glass of Grisette (Photo by Justin Chesney)
COOK LIKE A LOCAL
Petits Pois a la Francaise Tart with Ricotta
By Donnie Glass, chef and co-owner of Grisette [to-go service available]
Yields 4 individual tarts
1 pound English peas, shelled (about 5 pounds in the shell)
12 ounces pie dough (ideally an all-butter pate brisee)
12 ounces ricotta cheese
12 pearl onions
2 cloves garlic
6 shallots
1/2 cup (4 ounces) white wine (unoaked)
2 ounces unsalted butter
8 ounces thick slab bacon
Salt and pepper, to taste
Lemon juice and zest, to taste
1 egg, for egg wash
A mix of herbs (parsley, mint and chives), to taste
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, salt the water so it tastes like the ocean. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Shell the peas and drop them into the boiling water for about 2 minutes. They should still be bright green when they're done. Once they’re just cooked, shock them in ice water. Drain them, pat them dry with paper towels and set aside.
Blanch the pearl onions in the same boiling water, peel and set aside. Dice the garlic and shallots and set aside.
Medium dice the bacon and put it into a cold pan. Gently render the fat from the bacon on low-medium heat until the bacon is crispy. Remove bacon from the pan, drain off about half of the fat (into the coffee can you keep on your counter full of bacon fat because you're a good cook) and return the pan to the stove. Add the garlic and shallots and cook over medium heat until they are soft but not browned. Once soft, add the bacon, pearl onions and peas back to the pan. Stir with a wooden spoon for about 1 minute. Deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine, season with salt and pepper, and add a squeeze of lemon juice, adjusting to taste. Turn the heat off, stir in a few knobs of butter, and transfer the mixture to a baking sheet to cool.
While the pea mixture is cooling down, divide the pie dough into four equal portions of 3 ounces each. Flatten each portion into a disc with your floured hands. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a thin circle, a little bigger than a CD (remember those?). Set aside at room temperature. (Pop the dough in and out of the fridge if it starts getting too warm.)
Once the tart dough is flattened, spread the ricotta on the dough circles, reserving about a tablespoon and leaving a little bit of a crust on the edges, like a pizza. Add the cooled peas, being careful not to drown the tart in the pea liquid. Shape the tarts into a rustic galette shape, folding the edges up and around the peas, leaving the center exposed. Use the remaining ricotta to dot the top of the tarts. Chill the tarts in the fridge for 30 minutes so the dough sets.
Brush the sides of the dough with an egg wash, and bake on a sheet tray in the preheated oven for 15 to 25 minutes, until browned and cooked through. Allow the tarts to cool slightly, and finish with chopped herbs, salt, pepper and lemon zest.
Other Notes From the Chef
Use a basic pate brisee recipe to make the tart dough (it's basically just unsweetened pie dough), though in a pinch, you may buy the best 100% butter dough you can find. You can buy good ricotta, too, or make your own, as we do. Either way, make sure it's seasoned with salt, pepper and lemon juice. I recommend visiting a local butcher shop and buying a good thick slab bacon. (If you use grocery store bacon for this recipe, it will not be nearly as good.)
