Vegetarianism Made E-Z (Recipes and Stuff - NO debate allowed here!)

[Monica]

I now shop mostly at a wonderful farmer's market. They have a lot of organic produce and grow most of it themselves. I'm so happy to have one nearby! They also have stuff I've never had before, like FRESH pinto beans, and several varieties of peas.

We cook a big pot of pintos every Sunday, to have on hand throughout the week. But wow, what a difference, using fresh beans instead of dried! The texture is so much better, and they cook faster (and digest better too!).

But I'd never had fresh Lady Cream Peas or Purple Hull Peas before! So last week I made a curried dish with the Purple Hull Peas, which turned out awesome! And tonight, I adapted a recipe for 'Cream Peas' and it came out great too. Here's what I made for dinner tonight:

1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tomatoes (vine-ripened if possible), chopped
1/2 tsp cumino (cumin) powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp salt (I use Celtic)
2 jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
1 TBSP olive oil
3 cups Lady Cream Peas (Purple Hull would probably work just fine)

First soak the peas for a few hours, to start the germination process (makes them more nutritious).

Then drain the peas, add fresh water, and start cooking them on medium heat, stirring occasionally.

While the peas are cooking, saute the veggies in the olive oil. I always give the onions a head start, and then chop the others and add them into the pot, in this order: garlic, japs, tomatoes.

Add the salt to the peas and the spices to the veggies.

When the peas are tender, drain. (Save the cooking water to use as stock for a soup.)

Add the peas to the veggies, and mix 'em up.

Serve with cornbread OR over rice.

NOTE: Fresh peas take only about 30 minutes to cook!