Three Pea Salad Food

THREE PEA SALAD

Steps:

• Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water. In another large bowl, whisk the shallot, vinegar, and sour cream together. Whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add the sugar snap peas to the boiling water and blanch for 20 seconds. Add the snow peas and cook for 20 seconds. Add frozen peas and cook for 20 seconds longer, until sugar snap and snow peas are crisp-tender, and frozen peas are heated through. Drain and immediately transfer the colander to ice water to stop the cooking. Drain again and pat the peas dry. Add peas to dressing and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.

PEA SALAD

Steps:

• Mix the sour cream, mayonnaise, salt, pepper, and vinegar together to make the dressing. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
• Stir 2/3 of the dressing into the peas until the peas are coated. Gently stir in the bacon, onion, cheese, and parsley until all combined. Taste and adjust seasonings. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 to 4 hours before serving. (Pop the extra dressing in the fridge, too.)
• Remove from the fridge and stir in the rest of the dressing to your liking. Sprinkle with more parsley before serving.

PESTO PEA SALAD

Steps:

• Cook the peas in a pot of boiling salted water for 1 minute. Immediately immerse the peas in a bowl of ice cold water, and drain when fully cooled.
• To assemble, place the spinach leaves in a salad bowl. Sprinkle the peas and pignolis over the spinach. Add the pesto and toss.
• Note: To toast pignolis, place them in a dry saute pan and cook over medium heat for about 4 minutes, until evenly browned, tossing frequently.
• Pesto:
• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup pignolis
• 3 tablespoons diced garlic (9 cloves)
• 5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 1/2 cups good olive oil
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• Place the walnuts, pignolis, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 30 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is finely pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Serve, or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.
• Copyright, 2001, Barefoot Contessa Parties!, All Rights Reserved
• Yield: 4 cups

SPRING PEA SALAD WITH JAMON AND MUSTARD VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Make the dressing: Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, olive oil, hazelnut oil, pepper, shallot and salt to taste in a small bowl. Adjust the seasonings. Set aside.
• Make the salad: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season with salt until the water tastes slightly of salted broth. Prepare an ice bath.
• Blanch the English peas and snap peas separately, for about 10 seconds each. Shock in the ice water and drain on paper towels. Cut the snap peas into thirds.
• In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over low heat. Tear the Jamon Serrano slices into bite-sized pieces and add to the oil in the skillet. Cook until crispy on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes total. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
• Assemble the salad: Toss the English peas, snap peas, pea shoots and snow peas with the vinaigrette to taste. Plate the salad and top with the Manchego, toasted hazelnuts and crispy jamon.

THREE PEA CHICKEN SALAD

Steps:

• Place the tarragon sprigs, chicken, the halved shallot, and the smashed garlic into a medium saucepan. Add water to cover by 1 inch and season with salt and pepper. Bring the water to a boil; remove the pan from heat, cover, and let it stand until the chicken is just cooked through. This takes 15 to 25 minutes depending on the size of your chicken breast. If I have a large one, I'll usually let it actually boil for 3 or 4 minutes before removing from the heat.
• Transfer the chicken to a plate and let it cool. Shred or dice the chicken.
• While the chicken is poaching, whisk the yogurt, oil, minced shallot, and minced garlic in a small bowl. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste.
• Combine all the peas in a medium bowl. Add the chicken, dressing, minced tarragon, parsley, chives, lemon zest, and 1 tbsp lemon juice; toss to coat. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and additional lemon juice, if desired. Serve spooned over toasted bread and/or lettuce leaves.