Fresh Pea Soup with Fresh Mint

Fresh Pea Soup with Fresh Mint

 

My husband’s favorite soup is Split Pea soup. This is another form of pea soup; a fresh bright summery pea soup with mint that I like warm or room temperature.  I hope he and you find it as refreshing as I do!

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 leek chopped (well cleaned)

1/2 medium chopped onion

1 clove chopped garlic

2 cups chicken stock

2-3 cups freshly shelled peas

1/3 cup chopped fresh mint leaves

¼ cup of sour cream

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Garnish with sour cream and mint leaf

Clean the leeks well as they tend to have sand inside them very often.

Saute the leeks, onion and garlic until just soft.  Add the broth, peas and herbs/spices.  Simmer for 10 minutes and add the sour cream and mix well.  Cool soup to room temperature.

Puree in batches and return to the saucepan.

Warm and serve garnished with sour cream

 

 

 

Tips:

·        Chives are a nice garnish as well
·        Frozen peas are almost as good so you can whip this up in the winter as well.
·        I threw a hand full of lettuce into the soup to give a bit more of an added flavor.

As always be your own Creative Dump Cook and change this recipe to what YOU have on hand!

Shrimp, Orzo, Spinach in a Fresh Lemon Vinaigrette

SHRIMP, ORZO, SPINACH IN A FRESH LEMON VINAIGRETTE

I saw something similar to this recipe on a cooking show and thought to adapt it a bit to use my mint and fresh shrimp I just bought. It reminded me of a Greek rice and spinach recipe I make which uses dill but in this I use mint. 

Below will serve 4-6 persons and I cut in half to serve the two of use.

Orzo is a great pasta which is found often used in the Mediterranean cuisine. Mixing in fish and greens makes for a beautiful looking dish. Adding a light vinaigrette brightens the taste immensely.

Kosher salt

1 pound orzo pasta

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 large shallot, chopped

1 large clove garlic

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2  cup water of the pasta water (after it cooks)

5 cups (6 ounces) spinach

2 tablespoon chopped mint

 Cook the pasta about 6-8 minutes until al dente. Drain and reserve ½ cup water

Make the vinaigrette and set aside .  (below)

Saute in a large pan the shrimp, shallots and garlic in the oil. The shallots give a

mild onion taste not to over-power the shrimp.

 

It takes only a few minutes to cook the shrimp on each side.  Remove the shrimp and add the water and the spinach (turning the heat to high) until wilted.

Add the cooked pasta, cooked shrimp, mint and vinaigrette to the skillet. Stir well.

Vinaigrette:

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil,  Zest of 2 large lemons,  1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 large lemons), 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt,  1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

TIPS:

·        I would replace the spinach with Arugula but don’t put in the mint

As always be your own Creative Dump Cook and change this recipe to what YOU have on hand!

Drying Fresh Herbs

DRYING FRESH HERBS

My dried Fresh Mint

I have a lovely herb garden growing and of course I want to "put them up" for use in the winter.

I have a few ways to save them but drying them is the easiest and great way to get the home grown herbs put up for use later.

First: Grow your favorite herbs.  Summer is the best time to cultivate them, water and prune and grow nice herbs.

Next Cut as they grow thus making the plant bloom fuller and bigger.

Take the stems and clean them.

Then pick the leaves off the stems.  

   Once dry of any water from cleaning them (lay on cookie sheet) place in a brown paper bag that has wholes poked around it to allow air to flow through.

Rap the top tight with a rubber band or string and place in a dark place. 

Let sit for 2 weeks or so until the leaves are brittle and dry.

Lay them out and crunch up making sure there are no stems in them.

Place in a air tight jar or spice container.  

ENJOY YEAR ROUND!

Beef Short Ribs Oven Baked- Roasted

BEEF SHORT RIBS OVEN BAKED - ROASTED

You might think I am a little nuts for making this dish in the middle of July, as it takes so long to cook and therefore filling the house with heat.  For what it seems as an endless time, our weather has been so full of rain, that a hearty homey dish was desired. With all the rain and humidity our air conditioning has been running non-stop anyway, so I succumbed to my desires and slow roasted these tasty beef ribs.  Boy was I glad I did!  Rich and hearty and just what I wanted.

This is a classic way of preparation and you will find many other variations from stove top, slow cookers to Korean spiced etc.

2.5 pounds beef ribs

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Oil

¾ cups of diced carrots, celery and leeks

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoon tomato sauce

Salt and pepper

2 bay leaves

1-2 sprigs of rosemary

2-3 cups beef broth

2 Cups red wine

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Prepare your diced vegetables making sure you rinse VERY well the Leeks as they tend to have allot of sand in between the leaves.

See how the sand is caught between the leaves:   

Sand hides between layers of leaves

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

Turn once browned on one side

  Season the ribs with salt and pepper. Lightly dust with flour. In a Dutch oven, warm the oil brown the ribs on each side.   

Remove from Pan

Remove the ribs to a plate and add the carrots, celery, leeks and garlic to the drippings, making sure to scrap the bottom of the pan. 

Sauté for 3-4 minutes on medium heat and then add the tomato paste and then the broth and bay leaf and rosemary.   Stir well.  Cook ribs in oven for 3 hours.

Remove the Ribs and cook the sauce on the stove top on medium high heat for 5 minutes to reduce and thicken sauce.   

Puree the sauce or strain it if you like a smoother sauce and top the ribs.








Tips:

·        Serve with White rice or butter egg noodles

·         Make a good soup from the leftover sauce

 

 

 

 

As always be your own Creative Dump Cook and change this recipe to what YOU have on hand!