Peas, their shoots and Pancetta

it's nearly PPPPPPPERFECT

I LOVE fresh English shelling peas. OBSESSED.

My mom would buy a large paper bag of them from the farmers market and I would “try” to help shuck them for dinner but mostly end up eating all of them. She wouldn’t mind. The best part was the occasional pea that would slip from my grasp. Not making into the bowl but clearly not meant for my mouth, the pea would end up on the floor to the delight of my basset hound. Occasionally I would just shell the whole pea on the floor, dispersing tiny green marbles all over to watch her long ears sweep from side to side attempting to grab all the peas.

I think part of the fun is removing them from their pod. Sometimes a pea is starchy, sometimes perfectly sweet, sometimes too underdeveloped to taste like much, but that’s the point. I would keep shucking chasing the perfect pea high. It’s addictive, a bag of peas would disappear before dinner.

Here’s my truth, I don’t live in the magical land of California anymore. I usually cope just fine (although I yearn for the windblown eucalyptus and the rocky pacific) but what mostly bums me out is the lack of fresh shelling peas. Farms don’t seem to grow enough of them here in Michigan and any attempt to grow them in my garden is simply fodder for a growing family of squirrels and rabbits.

SO my craving (ummm addiction to peas) and the desire for something springy leads me to this: FROZEN PEAS. And while, the frozen pea are not quite the same it gets the job done.

The key to the frozen pea is to pick the best quality one you can find. I use a Northern Michigan company that is processing and harvesting peas from Michigan (they are somewhat local to me.) The other incredible hack that I am proposing is to buy pea shoots. Here, we get plenty of local pea shoots and by adding them in with the peas, it can bump up the pea flavor. In tandem, the pea shoots give the frozen pea more freshness, more complexity and makes the pea taste sweeter. It really does wonder to the frozen pea. The classic combination of bacon, or pancetta with peas is JUST SO GOOD and makes for an easy go to sauce for many a week nights.

Here is a rapid fire list: gnocchi, pasta, ricotta toast, over an egg, with a fillet of fish or sautéed shrimp, mixed into broth as a springy soup. For those vegetarian, a quick swap of pancetta for preserved lemon gives a delicious salty complexity that might be even better, so good in fact that this combo is currently featured on my April dinner menu at the restaurant.

PEAS and their SHOOTS with PANCETTA - a springy sauce

makes enough sauce for 8 oz dried pasta - cut this recipe in half if it is for a sauce for a fish. I made potato gnocchi for one meal, and ricotta toast for another. For toast, omit the butter at the end.

2 cups frozen peas

2 garlic cloves - thinly sliced (I like to use a mandolin for consistency and I like it goodfellas thin)

3 sliced pancetta - cut into small 1/4 lardons or (1 1/2 TAB chopped preserved lemon)

2 cups pea shoots

2 TAB olive oil if using preserved lemon and not pancetta)

3 TAB butter

ground black pepper to taste

kosher salt to taste

parmesan grated ( optional)

In a medium sauté pan, place cut pancetta in the pan, and then turn heat to medium low. Depending on the pancetta, I add a tablespoon or two of water to help render out the fat. The water evaporates drawing the fat out of the pancetta. Once the water is gone, there should be fat leftover that start to crispy/fry the pancetta. Stir often once the water is evaporated to ensure even color. Once a golden fat and brick hue pork has been achieved with your lardons, remove with a slotted spoon. The fat should remain in the pan.

If there isn’t enough pancetta fat or I am making the preserved lemon version, I start with olive oil/add to the pan. Add thinly sliced garlic, stirring while it goes from translucent and bubbling to opaque verging on the lightest of gold. Immediately add the peas, a splash of pasta water if making pasta sauce, (preserved lemon for the veg version), pasta, start swirling in cubed butter. Add water to thin while you keep swirling (I keep a ladle near by.) Then add pea shoots just to barely wilt, and finish by adding crispy pancetta. Taste and adjust with salt and black pepper. Finish with parmesan. (Again if not making for pasta but simply for toast, you can add peas, pancetta and pea shoots pretty much all at the same time.)