For the second week in a row, I had the delight of receiving English peas in my CSA box. English peas do have to be shelled before eating, but they are so worth the little amount of effort required. My husband and I shelled them in a matter of minutes while talking on the phone with some family.

Last week, I utilized the peas in fried rice and vegetable korma. Both dishes came out tasting so fresh and delicious, but for this week I really wanted to make the peas the center of attention. I had to think for a little while before deciding what I wanted to do with the peas and finally settled on English pea soup. It was simple, delicious, filling and best of all, quick! I prepared some multigrain croutons with white truffle oil and butter as a nice crunchy compliment to the creamy soup.

Enjoy the recipe below and let me know how it turns out for you if you try it.

English Pea Soup

• 4 T. olive oil
• 1 large clove garlic, rough chop
• 1 large leek, sliced (white and light green part only)
• 2 medium ribs celery, diced
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 quart shelled English peas
• 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1/4 cup Italian parsley, minced
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• optional garnishes: chopped chives, crumbled pancetta, creme fraiche

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, leeks and celery. Allow to cook until softened, about 10 minutes.

Add stock and potatoes to the pan and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat to a simmer and allow to cook until the potatoes are almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add the peas and continue cooking until potatoes and peas are cooked through, about 10 minutes more.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in parsley.

Puree soup in a blender or with an immersion blender until completely smooth. Serve hot, room temperature, or cold with optional garnishes.

Yield: 4-6 servings

Note: This recipe can be made completely vegan by using vegetable stock in place of the chicken stock.

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• 1 whole chicken
• 2 t. ground cumin
• 1 1/2 t. coarse salt
• 1 t. smoked paprika
• 1 t. chili powder
• 1 t. freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Thoroughly combine spices in a small bowl.

Remove excess fat from chicken and gently separate skin from meat without removing skin from chicken.

Rub spice mixture all over chicken, under skin and inside.

Place in roasting pan and roast until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F at the thickest part of the thigh and the juices run clear, about 90 minutes depending on size of chicken.

Allow to rest 15 minutes before carving. Serve with rhubarb chutney.

Note: The skin may be removed after cooking. I feel it is important to leave the skin on for cooking to keep the meat moist.

For the chutney:

• 2 t. olive oil
• 1 large Spanish onion, thinly sliced
• 5 large stalks rhubarb, large dice
• 3/4 c water
• 1/3 c honey
• 2 T. fresh ginger, minced
• 1 whole stick cinnamon
• 1 t. molasses
• 1/2 t. ground coriander
• 1/4 t. crushed red pepper flakes

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add sliced onions and cook over medium-low heat until well browned.

Add rhubarb, water, honey, ginger, cinnamon, molasses, coriander and red pepper flakes. Stir well. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.

Allow to cook until rhubarb has softened and liquid has mostly evaporated.

Great with roasted or grilled pork or chicken. Also makes a wonderful condiment on sandwiches.

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• 2 large stalks rhubarb, small dice
• 1 1/2 c. black cherry juice
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 3 t. orange juice concentrate

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until liquid has reduced by half and is nice and syrupy.

Makes a wonderful dessert topping on vanilla ice cream or a great drizzle on savory grilled and roasted meats.

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This recipe was written as a quick dinner solution utilizing left-over sweet potatoes. If you want to make the entire recipe from start to finish, bake, steam or roast two medium sweet potatoes. Mash the cooked sweet potato and add cinnamon, brown sugar and toasted chopped pecans to taste. The chopped pecans are not essential, but do add a nice crunch for textural contrast. You could also use toasted pecans as a garnish.

For the ravioli:

• 2 cups sweet potato casserole or souffle
• 1 package won ton skins
• 1 1/2 tablespoon butter, oil or margarine
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 4 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon arrowroot powder
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups broth, either vegetable or chicken
• salt, to taste

Open package of won ton wrappers and keep covered with plastic wrap so they don’t dry out. Drop about 1 1/2 teaspoons of sweet potato on the middle of each wrapper. Using your finger, brush water around the outside edge of one-half of the wrapper then fold over to make a pouch. Set aside and continue until the sweet potato mixture is gone.

Put on a large pot of water to boil for cooking the ravioli.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and add the sliced onion. Cook until the onion begins to be translucent (about 10 minutes). Add the garlic and continue cooking just until the onion and garlic begin to get a little brown (about 10 more minutes). Add the garam masala and salt, to taste. Sprinkle in the arrowroot powder and stir thoroughly. Add the broth and allow to simmer. Check for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Keep sauce warm over low heat.

Salt your boiling water and drop in ravioli. Cook approximately 2-3 minutes or until wrappers are fully cooked and filling is hot. Drain and add cooked ravioli to the sauce. Stir gently to coat the ravioli and serve immediately.

Serves 4

Optional add-ins:

To make this a more hearty dish add some sliced mushrooms and cook along with the onions. You can also add some chopped cooked poultry (roast duck is a wonderful pairing) along with the garlic.

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With the holiday season fast approaching many people have recently asked me if there are some healthier food options for holiday entertaining. My answers is always an enthusiastic, “Yes!”

The best news is that healthy options can still be very quick and easy to prepare. For a fun, attractive way to serve hummus or other dips, hollow out a small red or green cabbage to use as a bowl. Place it on a serving tray surrounded with pita chips or a variety of veggie sticks.

I recently served a hummus trio at an open house and had many requests for the recipes. Here is a recipe for roasted red pepper hummus. You can find recipes for my traditional hummus and black bean hummus by clicking on the links or going to the recipes category.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

• 1 medium garlic clove
• 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 large roasted red pepper*
• 1 large lemon, juiced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

Mince the garlic in a clean, dry bowl of a food processor. Add the roasted red pepper, lemon juice, tahini, cumin, cayenne and salt. Process until smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste. Add water and /or olive oil to adjust to desired consistency. Garnish with finely chopped parsley.

*Instructions on how to roast a red pepper here.

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