I love simple, clean, seasonal food.  Food that is not overly complicated and really focuses on the beauty of the flavors of just a few key ingredients, one never outshining the other.  And while part of what makes my job so much fun is figuring out creative and unique ways to present a relatively simple bites – dressing up something uncomplicated, while providing a little visual inspiration… In the end, it is all about the flavors of the food.

This Pea Purée recipe from a recent party Canapé catered for Garden & Gun Magazine is the perfect backdrop for any spring garden soirée.

Simple Spring Pea Puree

3 cups fresh english peas

1/2 cup light extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp unsalted butter

sprig of thyme

kosher salt

pepper

dash of heavy cream (optional)

Heat olive oil, butter and thyme in saute pan over medium heat.  Remove thyme.  Add peas and cook until tender.  While warm, transfer peas to food processor and purée until smooth. Pass pea purée through sève, pressing with ladle to remove shells. Season with salt and pepper. Splash with heavy cream.

Phyllo Cups

Frozen Phyllo Dough

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 350 F. Thaw dough and unroll onto parchment paper.  On a separate piece of parchment, using two sheets of phyllo, cut rounds with a 3-inch cutter.  Place each round into a muffin tin brushed with olive oil and press the center down into the cup. Bake phyllo cups until golden brown.

Assembly

Spoon a tablespoon of purée into each phyllo cup.  Top with a piece of shaved parmesean, a drizzle of olive oil and lemon zest or top with ricotta salata.

photo by michell frizzell

This entry was posted on Monday, June 14th, 2010 at 6:43 pm and is filed under Events, Recipes, Savories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.