Your New Favorite Way to Cook Peas

Nearly ten years ago, my family went to Paris. Of all the magnificent things we saw and did, the food is a special highlight of my memories. And there is one meal, in particular, that stands out to me. 

When you visit the Eiffel Tower, you take one of three bright yellow elevators. These lifts only have three stops: ground level, the second floor, and the tippy top of the tower. The elevators are the only way to get to the top observation deck; the staircase ends on that second floor and I thought the only reason the elevator would stop on the second floor is to then escort the people who opt for the stairs to the top. Spoiler alert: I was wrong. 

Turns out, there's a restaurant on that second floor of the Eiffel Tower: Le Jules Verne. It was an über-fancy restaurant where waiters rush over to adjust your chair whenever you get up and I was nervous. Honestly, I don't remember much about the lunch we had. There were multiple courses and I'm sure everything was delicious. 

There's one dish that I do remember, though. And actually, I don't even remember the entire dish. I remember one ingredient above all others: peas. We ate (something) on a bed of creamy, delicious, puréed peas. They had been whipped into this delightfully creamy texture and I could tell even then that the peas were so fresh and bursting with flavor. I simply couldn't get enough of them. I mean, I've been thinking about these peas for ten years!  

So, after I made a recipe that called for heavy cream and found myself with a fair amount leftover that I didn't want to waste, I googled "how to use extra heavy cream." As soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I was making it. Because of the peas!

Creamy Green Peas
(option to add salmon)

Ingredients

    For the creamed peas:

• 1/4 of a red onion, diced
• 1 cup peas, fresh or frozen
• 4 tbsp butter, split in half
• 1/4 cup veggie stock 
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 3 scallions
• Salt and pepper

    For the salmon dish, you'll need everything for the peas plus:

• 2 filets of salmon
• Drizzle of olive oil 
• 1/4 — 1/2 cup heavy cream (1/4 cup if you're pureeing half of the peas, 1/2 cup if you're blending all of it)
• Salmon seasoning, to your taste (I use salt, pepper, steak seasoning, and garlic powder)

Steps

1. Cook the peas in a pot of boiling, lightly salted water for ~6 minutes. Frozen peas might need less cooking time than fresh. Drain the peas and set aside. 
2. Melt half the butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Once it's melted, add the diced onion and cook until soft.
3. Add the stock to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes until the liquid is reduced. Add the heavy cream and stir, cooking at a steady simmer for another ~3 minutes.
4. Add the peas and stir. Cook at a low simmer for 5-7 minutes until thickened. 
5. Add the rest of the butter and scallions. Stir and let cook for another 2-3 minutes. Enjoy warm! 

For the salmon dish: 

1. Cook the salmon in a skillet drizzled with light olive oil, skin side down to start. (I used the same one as the peas.) Season the salmon with spices to your taste. Flip the salmon halfway through cooking. Cooking times will depend on the size of your salmon fillets.
2. As the salmon cooks, add the peas and 1/4 cup of heavy cream to a blender. Blend/pulse until combined. The mixture should be thick. 
3. Pour the pea mixture into the bottom of a large dish and place the salmon on top. Enjoy! 

The peas on their own were delicious. So flavorful and the perfect side dish to any summer meal. I wish I had cooked the peas a little bit more, they were a bit underdone and that made them a little over-firm. I saved half of these peas to eat as a side dish and blended the rest to recreate my version of that Parisian dish. The finished product made for the tastiest sauce/base for a freshly cooked fillet of salmon.