A Non-Recipe Recipe
Last month, with the peas coming in from the garden, Matt had the urge to dig some new potatoes and make a special dish from his youth. He was calling it creamed peas and
potatoes. I'm calling creamy peas and potatoes as with his title all I can picture is mashed potatoes, but with peas mashed up in it, too. It makes no difference I suppose, but that is was I shall call it. It seems a lot of people know about this dish, too. My boss said it was a family holiday side during her youth. One of the librarians downtown said her kids loved it growing up, like Matt did. As for me, well, I'd never even heard of it. But, I always mistakenly thought peas were gross as a kid. Little did I know!
I call it a non-recipe recipe because it was one of those throw in some
of this and some of that and voila! Creamy peas and potatoes! type recipes that you get from mothers and grandmothers....which is exactly where Matt got his non-recipe. If you're comfortable in the kitchen I am sure it will be enough, or perhaps you'll already have your own grandma's recipe locked away in your head. Here is the non-recipe to the best of my knowledge and observation.
Creamy Potatoes and Peas
Stir in the cooked vegetables until they are well coated in that yummy gravy.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve.
If you wanted to try it with a more concrete recipe there are countless variations available online with a quick internet search, like this one from Taste of Home. Or this one from cooks.com.
It was really, really good--rich, satisfying, and garden-fresh. Perfect!
Creamy Potatoes and Peas
Boil the peas and potatoes until tender.
Make a roux with a dollop of oil and some flour.
Add a cup or so of milk.
Cook over medium-low heat until it starts to thicken up making a creamy, white gravy for your veg.Stir in the cooked vegetables until they are well coated in that yummy gravy.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve.
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| That is the "Oh, yeah, that's good," face after the first bite. |
It was really, really good--rich, satisfying, and garden-fresh. Perfect!
Mama made mashed potatoes with butter and milk as she mashed them. She put about a half cup o mashed potatoes on our plates and made a depression with the spoon. She put green (English) peas in the depression and told us it was a bird's nest.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was about eight-years-old, I realized I had been eating peas and really hated them. So, I announced I was never eating another one. Of course, I whispered it so the three younger siblings would not follow suit. That would mean I waa responsible for the mutiny.
My younger daughter cannot eat them. I believe it is an allergy we both have. The younger one ate them when she was younger, but she ate everything!
UK blogs talk about eating mushy green peas. Now, that is even worse than peas. They all seem to love them.
This brought back memories! We often had creamed new peas or potatoes for supper as a child. Then the third day momma threw them together and we had creamed new potatoes and peas. Did the same thing later with corn and lima beans. Third day we had succotash! Yum!
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