Recipe: Fresh Pea & Mint Falafel

I’m a huge fan of peas and with their inherent sweetness find them hard to resist. They are relatively trouble-free to grow so I plant quite a large crop each year. I love the taste of freshly podded peas and will admit that many of them are eaten as they are being picked. The sugars in fresh peas quickly turn to starch after picking but luckily frozen peas work just as well in this recipe, so feel free to use whichever you like.

 

The accompanying dip, simply flavoured with harissa paste, contrasts wonderfully with the sweetness of the peas and its light pink colour looks fabulous against the intense green of the falafel.

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

Pea Falafel:

300g fresh peas, podded (or frozen peas)

1 tblsp vegetable oil

2 shallots, finely chopped

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 tsp ground cumin

1 large handful of mint, finely chopped

1 tblsp sesame seeds

50g fresh breadcrumbs

1 large egg

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

4-5 tblsp vegetable oil for shallow frying

 

Harissa Dip:

150g natural Greek-style yoghurt

1 tblsp harissa paste

 

METHOD:

 

Pea Falafel:

1. Place fresh peas (if using) in a small saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and allow to simmer for 1 minute, then remove from the heat and drain. If using frozen peas, place in a bowl and cover with boiling water and allow to defrost. Drain and set aside.
2. Place the vegetable oil in a small frying pan over a moderate heat and gently cook the shallot for a couple of minutes until beginning to soften. Add the chilli and cumin and cook for a further minute.
3. Place the shallot mixture and the peas into a food processor and pulse a few times to break the peas down and mix everything together. Add the chopped mint, sesame seeds, breadcrumbs, egg and pulse again to form a chunky paste. Do not purée the peas as you want them to retain a bit of texture.
4. To fry the falafel, heat a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a moderate heat. Drop a tablespoons of the falafel mixture into the oil and fry for 3-4 minutes on each side until golden brown. Place onto a plate lined with kitchen roll to drain. Place in a warm oven so that they don't go cold. Fry the falafel in batches until all the mixture has been used up. Serve warm with some of the harissa dip.

 

Harissa Dip:

1. Mix the yoghurt and harissa paste together and place in a bowl alongside the falafel.

Makes 16-18 falafel.

 

 

Recipe: Garden Pea Soup with Sourdough Croutons

This is one of my favourite soups and the fact that it is so easy to make, means that it is even more appealing. You could use freshly podded peas but to be honest, frozen peas are just as good and so convenient. The sourdough croutons add a little bit of texture and along with some peas left whole give the soup substance. This is a wonderful summery soup but the fact that it uses frozen peas means that it can be made at any time of year.

 

I used vegetable stock but this soup is also lovely made with stock left over after boiling ham or bacon.  

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

Sourdough Croutons:

250g stale sourdough bread cut into 2cm cubes

2 tblsp olive oil

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

 

Garden Pea Soup:

25g butter

1 large onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

500ml vegetable stock

500g frozen peas

Large bunch of fresh mint, leaves only roughly torn

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

 

To finish:

100g frozen peas

50ml double cream or crème fraîche

Pea shoots for garnish

 

METHOD:

 

Sourdough Croutons:

1. Heat oven to 180C/Fan Oven 160C/Gas mark 4. Put the cubes of bread in a roasting pan and toss in the olive oil. Season well. Place in pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes, giving them a toss halfway through, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

 

Garden Pea Soup:

1. Heat the butter in a large saucepan over a moderate heat. Add the onions and crushed garlic and fry gently for about 5 minutes until softened but not coloured.
2. Add the stock and increase the temperature until the stock is boiling. Add the peas and cook for 3-4 minutes until the peas are tender. Remove from the heat. Add the mint and season generously with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Purée the soup in batches by filling a blender/food processor one third full and puréeing until smooth. Pass through a sieve (for a super smooth soup) into a clean saucepan. Check for seasoning and adjust as necessary. 

 

To finish:

1. Add the remaining frozen peas and heat the soup gently over a moderate heat but do not allow to boil or it will lose its lovely green colour. Serve in bowls with a swirl of cream or crème fraîche, some croutons and a few pea shoots.

Serves 6.