Asparagus and Pea Salad

I often find it entirely satisfying to compose an entire meal of simple vegetable side dishes. I would say especially in the spring and summer, when vegetables are most plentiful, but really it is something I do throughout the year. However, asparagus and peas remind me of spring and so they seem a fitting side dish to signify the return of spring. Roasting the asparagus before chopping and combining it with the other ingredients, lends a nice earthy flavor to the entire dish and accentuates the sweetness of the peas, tangerine and shallots. For spring, asparagus and pea salad pairs well with baked leeks and caramelized fennel.

2 bunches asparagus, trimmed

½ c peas

2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

2 small shallots, thinly sliced into rounds

1 tangerine, juiced

2 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spread asparagus evenly on a baking sheet and drizzle with a tsp of olive oil. Place in the oven and roast until tender, about 3 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Once cool, slice the asparagus into thin rounds.

2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tsp olive oil over medium heat in a small frying pan. Add shallots and sauté until golden brown, about 5 minutes, stirring continuously so as not to burn. Once the shallots are brown, place in a bowl with the peas, parsley, tangerine juice, asparagus, and fold to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm, room temperature or chilled.

Serves 3-4

Coleslaw with Rice Vinaigrette

The term coleslaw comes from the Dutch term for cabbage salad, koolsalade. Domesticated cabbage originated as a wild mustard plant, which grew along the Mediterranean seacoast. Cabbage is a great addition to any diet because it is high in vitamin C, vitamin K and fiber, among other nutritional properties. Coleslaws have become one of the more popular salads in American cuisine, but all too often they are drenched with creamy dressings, which can detract from both the flavor of the vegetables and their general appeal. Vinaigrettes make a lovely dressing for coleslaw, as cabbage and vinegar compliment each other and the colors and flavors of the vegetables are still able to shine. Coleslaws are a delicious addition to any number menus including Mexican, Thai, Mediterranean and American. Smashed new potatoes or purple potato salad are both delicious with coleslaw.

Any variety of cabbage may be used.

1 small head cabbage, quartered and thinly sliced

1 medium carrot, trimmed and grated

¼ red bell pepper, finely diced

1 small white onion, finely diced

¼ c peas

¼ c almonds, sliced and toasted

2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

2 tsp rice vinegar

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

1. Toss cabbage, carrot, red bell pepper, onion peas and almonds together in a medium mixing bowl.

2. In a small bowl, combine parsley, vinegar and brown sugar. Continue stirring or set aside until sugar has dissolved. Once sugar is dissolved, add olive oil and stir to combine.

3. Pour dressing over prepared vegetables and thoroughly toss to combine. Place coleslaw in fridge and marinate coleslaw at least one hour.

4. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve room temperature or chilled.

Serves 3-4

Pea Soup with Mint

Vegetable purées make a perfect summer soup as they can easily be served at any temperature, as a meal on their own or in addition to other dishes or courses. When making puréed soups it is important to not overcook the ingredients to maintain their color, flavor and overall integrity. Peas have been cultivated by humans for thousands of years and continue to be a widely consumed vegetable. Puréed peas turn into a rich and creamy vibrant green base for a fresh and simple summer soup. Minted pea soup requires little preparation, holds up well in the fridge for a few days and can be served warm, room temperature or chilled. Pea soup is delicious with leek galette or brown rice fritters.

To make the soup vegan, simply omit the butter. Frozen peas work just as well as fresh.

For Nicholas, who requested a pea soup recipe.

4 c peas, fresh or frozen

1 large white onion, trimmed and diced

4 tbsp butter

2 tbsp fresh mint

water

salt and pepper

1. Melt butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

2. Next, place peas in pot and stir to combine with onions. Add water until peas are covered and bring to a simmer. If using frozen peas, turn heat off after water reaches a simmer. If using fresh peas, simmer peas until they are just cooked, 3-5 minutes, and remove from heat.

3. Place cooked ingredients and liquid in a food processor and thoroughly combine. Add mint and additional water as desired, thoroughly process into a smooth purée. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Serve fresh pea soup warm, room temperature or chilled.

Makes about 4 cups

Spring Vegetable and Rye Berry Salad

Whole grains are grass seeds, which contain endosperm, bran and cereal germ, as opposed to refined grains that consist of only endosperm, and are a great addition to any diet because they provide more protein and fiber than their refined counterparts. Cooking with whole grains does take some patience, as they require a longer cooking time due to the bran exterior, but whole grains are well worth the extra time on the stove as they have a rich, nutty and earthy flavor. The easiest way to cook whole grains such as rye, wheat or oat berries, is to boil them for 1-2 hours until they are al dente. The cooked berries can then be added to any number of recipes or eaten on their own. Whole grains mixed with vegetables, herbs and cheese make great side salads to keep on hand during the summer, as they can be eaten room temperature or cold and taste delicious with for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Spring vegetable and rye berry salad is delicious with braised lentils and socca.

Peas may be used instead of sugar snap peas. Most grain berries will work in place of rye such as wheat, oat or barley.

2 c cooked rye berries

1 medium new potato, thinly sliced into rounds

1 small leek, trimmed, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

¼ lb sugar snap peas, trimmed and cut in half widthwise

¼ lb asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1" pieces

½ small red pepper, trimmed and finely diced

1 tbsp parsley, roughly copped

½ c feta

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

leaf lettuce (optional)

1. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add potatoes and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Remove the potatoes from skillet, leaving the oil in the skillet and place them in a medium-mixing bowl.

2. Reduce heat to medium, add red pepper and leeks and sauté until just cooked, about 1 minute. Remove from heat, stir in parsley and set skillet aside.

3. Place the asparagus and peas in a steamer basket with water in a small pot. Cover the pot and bring the water to a boil. Once water boils, remove vegetables from heat and place them in the bowl with the potatoes.

4. Add the rye berries and skillet ingredients to the potatoes and vegetables, gently toss to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper.

5. Sprinkle feta on top or gently toss with salad when serving. Serve salad room temperature or chilled on leaf lettuce if desired.

Serves 3-4

Matar Saag Paneer : Indian Cheese with Spinach and Peas

Saag and matar are two of my favorite Indian dishes, spinach and peas respectively cooked in a fragrant tomato sauce. I especially like them combined and served with fried paneer, which is a form of Indian cheese. For recipes and ideas, such as this curry, I generally turn to Julie Sahni's book Classic Indian Cooking. A few weeks ago, I decided to make homemade paneer, which was surprisingly easy and satisfying and became the inspiration for and main ingredient in this dish, based on recipes in Classic Indian Cooking.

Paneer may be found at specialty grocery stores or paneer from scratch. Meat such as chicken or lamb may be used instead of paneer.

2 c paneer, cut into ½ inch cubes

1 c cooked spinach

1 c peas, fresh or frozen

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, pressed or finely chopped

1 c tomatoes, fresh or canned, finely chopped

1 ½ c hot water

6 tbsp ghee or vegetable oil

1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 tsp ground coriander

½ tsp turmeric

¼ tsp black pepper

½ tsp paprika

1 tsp flour

1 tsp garam masala

2 tbsp cilantro, finely chopped

salt

1. Spread paneer on a clean dish towel and allow cubes to dry slightly, about 30 minutes. Dust paneer in flour. Heat 3 tbsp ghee or oil in a medium over medium heat. Working in small batches, add paneer to skillet and fry, turning evenly until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. In a large heavy pan or Dutch oven, heat ghee or oil used for frying and remaining ghee or oil over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until slightly brown, stirring constantly. Add garlic and ginger and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add coriander, turmeric, paprika, black pepper, sauté for about 10 seconds and add tomatoes. Cook until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.

3. Add 1 ¼ c water and spinach and bring sauce to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove sauce from heat and cool slightly before puréeing sauce with an immersion blender or other food processor.

4. Return sauce to the large pan over medium heat and add peas, fried paneer and ¼ c water. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until peas are cooked. Remove from heat, season to taste with salt, cover and allow dish to rest at least 1 hour before serving.

5. Reheat, adding garam masala and cilantro and gently combine before serving. Serve over basmati rice or with Indian bread.

Serves 3-4

Vegetable or Vegetable Lamb Pasties

Pasties, likely originating in England, were traditionally fed to laborers, particularly miners, because they could hold the crust, eat the filling without touch it and discard the dirty crust once they had finished eating. Butte, Montana has a strong tradition of pasties due to it being a mining town with Irish heritage. I like making pasties because they are such a perfect meal, work with many different fillings and can easily be taken to go or frozen for later. Soups such as mustard green or roasted squash and salads such as caesar or beet make great starters for pasties.

Other ground meats may be substituted for lamb such as beef or bison. Other combinations or proportions of vegetables will work as well. Most fresh herbs will work in the crust including rosemary, thyme, mint or parsley.

Made especially for Annie, who specifically requested pasties.

Crust

2 ¼ c flour

1 c chilled butter, cubed

2 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp fresh herbs, finely chopped

1 tsp salt

¼ tsp ground pepper

ice water

Filling

1 medium red potato, finely cubed

1 stalk celery, trimmed and finely diced

1 leek, trimmed and thinly sliced

1 carrot, trimmed and finely diced

½ c peas

½ c spinach, roughly chopped

5 button mushrooms, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

¼ lb ground lamb*

1 tbsp butter, melted

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1 egg, beaten

*lamb may be added or omitted depending upon preference

1. To make crust: thoroughly combine flour, butter, baking powder, herbs, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl or food processor. Slowly add ice water, 1 tbsp at a time, to flour mixture and gently combine until dough begins to form. Being careful not to add too much water or over work dough. Form dough into two balls and place in the refrigerator.

2. To make filling: combine all vegetables, butter, seasoning and lamb if desired in a large mixing bowl. There may be remaining filling depending upon desired size of pasties.

3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove dough from refrigerator, each ball between two squares of parchment paper and roll each into a 12" diameter circle. Place 1 ½ -2 c filling on ½ of each circle, leaving a 2" border of dough. Fold the other ½ of the dough over the filling. Pinch border closed, cut a 1" slit into the top of the pastie and place pastie on a baking sheet. Repeat process with second circle. Brush pasties with beaten egg.

4. Place pasties in oven and bake until golden brown, 30-40 minutes. Remove pasties from oven and cool for 5-10 minutes. Serve pasties warm.

Makes 2 pasties