lemony pea and mint pesto crostini |
My poor little freezer is the opposite of the TARDIS. It is a lot smaller on the inside than it looks on the outside. I am forced to have a "one in, one out" policy as I try to cram things back in. But I'd forgotten to find space for a half-used bag of frozen peas, which had now been sitting a little forlornly on top of the freezer having defrosted overnight.
lemony pea and mint pesto crostino |
Could these mushy defrosted peas be saved? Hell, of course they could, if I could, as Chaucer said so eloquently "Then is it wisdom, as it seems to me, To make a virtue of necessity . . ."
So smear a little of this pea pesto on toasted bread with a shaving of Parmesan and a little chilli flakes (or my favourite, fruity Aleppo pepper), or serve with grilled sausages. Suddenly necessity seems wonderfully virtuous!
Makes about 24 crostini (from a long French stick)
Skill level: Easy
ingredients:
250g frozen peas (or fresh, blanched)
1 x small garlic clove, finely chopped
a small handful of mint leaves (about 15 to 20)
juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
freshly ground black pepper
salt, to taste
Aleppo pepper (or dried chilli flakes)
rounds of toasted French bread
directions:
- Tip the peas into a blender with the garlic, a few mint leaves and lemon juice. Blend until a rough paste forms.
- Add the olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Blend again. You may prefer a rough texture or a smoother one: it really is up to you!
- Season with a load of freshly ground black pepper. Add salt to taste.
- Serve smeared over slices of toasted French bread rounds, with shards of Parmesan and few Aleppo pepper (or dried chilli) flakes.
5 comments:
I'm afraid my freezer is in the same state. Maybe you should do a freezer dive selection of recipes for your Guardian blog. I have loads. Always have a bag of peas in there. Number one rule! This pesto looks gorgeous of course x
That's a fabulous idea - I shall pitch it to them :)
Some of the most delicious things derive from accidents.This is fortuitous pea pesto I would say.It looks yummy.As you well know I accidentally knocked my fridge dial and froze all my salad leaves.Well as you so cleverly advised me on Dinner doctor I turned the ice cream into the most wonderful ice cream.Thank you.And what a great idea of Dom´s.You should deffo pitch it.
I love, love, love pesto but I have never tried pea pesto. It has been on my to do list for a very long time. I like the addition of chilli flakes to give it a bit of a lift.
All three drawers are full in our freezer and I have recently conducted an audit to show what's in there because you just can't find anything! Your pea pesto looks amazing :)
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