Pea Champ Food

CHAMP

Steps:

• Scrub the potatoes and boil them in their jackets. Finely chop the scallions. Cover the scallions with cold milk and bring slowly to a boil. Simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave to infuse. Peel and mash the freshly boiled potatoes and, while hot, mix with the boiling milk and scallions. Beat in some of the butter. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve in one large or four individual bowls with a knob of butter melting in the center.
• Champ may be put aside and reheated later in a moderate oven at 350°F. Cover with foil while it reheats so that it doesn't get a skin.
• Parsley Champ:
• Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of freshly chopped parsley to the milk, bring to a boil for 2 or 3 minutes only, to preserve the fresh taste and color. Beat into the mashed potatoes and serve hot.
• Chive Champ:
• Substitute freshly chopped chives for parsley.
• Dulse Champ:
• Soak a couple of fists of seaweed in cold water for an hour or more. Drain and stew in milk until tender, about 3 hours. Add a good knob of butter and some pepper and beat into the mashed potato. Taste and correct the seasoning. Serve hot.
• Pea Champ:
• This special champ could only be made for a few weeks when the fresh green peas were in season. Cook the peas in the boiling salted milk with a pinch of sugar until tender. Add to the mashed potatoes and pound together in the usual way.

IRISH CHAMP (MASHED POTATOES)

Steps:

• Finely chop the green onions (white& green tops) and mix with the cold milk.
• bring slowly to a boil and simmer 3-4 minutes, turn off the heat and leave to infuse.
• Peel and mash the cooked potatoesand while still hot mix with the boiled milk& green onions.
• Beat in some of the butter.
• Season with salt& pepper.
• Put a knob of butter on top& serve.
• You can do this recipe ahead and reheat in a 350F oven, covered with foil until hot (apprx 30 minutes).

PEACH ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Place the peaches and honey in the jar of a blender. Puree until smooth. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, bring the milk almost to a boil over medium heat. In a second medium saucepan, blend together the egg yolks, sugar and salt with a wooden spoon until thick and light (be careful not to make the mixture foamy). Slowly stir in half the hot milk, then transfer the mixture to the other saucepan with the remaining milk and stir until blended.
• Decrease the heat to low and cook gently, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Continue stirring the custard until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and the mixture reaches 175 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from the heat.
• Set a sieve over a large, clean bowl and pass the custard through the sieve. Discard any eggy solids. Add the peach puree and vanilla and stir to combine. Chill the custard completely over an ice bath made by filling a large bowl with ice cubes and water, or refrigerate it until chilled. Churn the ice cream according to the instructions for your ice-cream maker.

EASY TRADITIONAL IRISH CHAMP

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and lightly salt the water . Simmer the potatoes until cooked through (when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife, the potato should be soft in the middle). This will take about 20 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes.
• Finely chop the white parts of the green onions and roughly chop the green parts. Set aside.
• Drain the cooked potatoes in a colander. Add the milk and butter to the empty pot and heat gently until melted.
• Add the potatoes back to the pot and mash until smooth and creamy. Be careful of over-mashing as the potatoes can end up gluey .
• Add the finely chopped white part of the onion and mix well. Season well with salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve warm topped with the sliced green parts of the onions.

SCALLION CHAMP

Steps:

• Scrub the potatoes and boil them in their skins. Chop the scallions finely. Cover with cold milk and bring slowly to a boil. Simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes, turn off the heat and leave to infuse. Peel and mash the freshly boiled potatoes and while hot, mix with the boiling milk and scallions. Beat in the butter. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve in 1 large or 6 individual bowls with a knob of butter melting in the centre. Champ may be put aside and reheated later in a moderate oven, 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Cover with tin foil while it reheats so that it doesn't get a skin.
• Scallion Champ is one of the best-loved Irish potato recipes. A bowl of mashed flecked with green scallions and a blob of butter melting in the centre is 'comfort' food at its very best.
• Note: This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The FN chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.

PEA & HAM PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, then cook the pasta following pack instructions, about 9 mins. Around 3 mins before the pasta is cooked, add the peas.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the onion for 5 mins until soft but not golden. Add the ham, double cream, lemon juice and parmesan, then season and mix well. Remove from the heat.
• Drain the pasta and peas (keeping a mugful of the cooking water) and return them to the pan. Tip in the creamy ham mixture and stir everything together to combine. If the mixture seems a little dry, add some of the reserved cooking water to loosen it a little. Serve with extra parmesan on top, if you like.