Recipe – Pea Salad

Ingredients

2 cups peas

¼ cup celery, diced

¼ cup onion, chopped

1 cup tomatoes, chopped

½ tsp. salt (optional)

Mayo (Vegenaise/plant-based Mayo)

Process: Mix all vegetables together. Add your mayo, mix again. Enjoy!

Food – Green Peas

In our garden this year we planted green peas. I was amazed how well they did along with the green beans. I just love to pop them out of their shells and eat them fresh. The following gives you a little health information about how good they are for your body.

“Peas are actually legumes that originated in western Asia. In Switzerland, traces of peas have been found near homesites, where they were probably being eaten during the Bronze Age, more than 5,000 years ago. Traveling from Greece to India, the pea arrived in China during the seventh century, where it was named bo tou, or ‘foreign legume.’ Peas were popular during the Middle Ages in Europe, being easy to grow, inexpensive, hearty, and a source of protein. …

“There are probably more than 1,000 varieties of garden peas, the most common of which are the smooth peas you usually find frozen in the supermarket. Some varieties, like the snow pea have edible pods. Peas are available fresh in the pod, dried (either whole or split), and frozen. …” The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth, p. 86, Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.

 

Pea Salad

Ingredients

2 cups peas

¼ cup celery, diced

¼ cup onion, chopped

1 cup tomatoes, chopped

½ tsp. salt (optional)

Mayo (Vegenaise/plant-based Mayo)

 

Process: Mix all vegetables together. Add your mayo, mix again. Enjoy!

Recipe – Barley-Pea Casserole

3 cups hot water

1 cup cashew pieces

1 cup whole barley

1 onion, chopped

1 Tbsp chicken-like seasoning

2 carrots, grated

1 Tbsp oil (option)

1-16 oz. pkg. frozen peas, thawed

Place all into casserole dish, except peas. Cover and bake for 1 ½ hours at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and top with peas.

Recipe – Garden Green Pea Soup

1 cup boiling water 3 cups frozen peas

Thaw peas in Boiling water—heat until hot. Blend together with:

¼ cup raw cashews 3 cups water

1 tspn onion powder Salt to taste

Add 2 cups cooked elbow noodles.

Serve and enjoy. YUM!

Food – The Magnificent Pea

Good news — peas are good for you! Peas are tasty and they are also very versatile. Here are a few excerpts from The Doctors Book of Food Remedies, Selene Yeager and the Editors of Prevention Health Books, published by Rodale, pages 416, 417.

“The cancer-fighting compound in peas is called chlorophyllin, which is the pigment responsible for giving them their shiny green hue. Chlorophyllin (related to chlorophyll, the substance that allows plants to convert sunlight into food) has a special molecular shape that allows it to grab cancer-causing chemicals in the body. ‘When you eat peas, the chlorophyllin attaches to carcinogens and helps prevent them from being absorbed,’ says Mary Ellen Camire, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the department of food science and human nutrition at the University of Main in Orono.

“Researchers haven’t pinned down exactly how many peas you’d have to eat to get the most benefits from chlorophyllin. You can’t go wrong, however, by including them on your menu as often as possible, along with other bright, green vegetables, After all, the greener the vegetable is, the more chlorophyllin it contains. … Green peas are an excellent source of fiber, with more than 4 grams in each half-cup serving.”

Green peas are so tasty and healthy. They can be added raw to salads or cooked and mashed with potatoes creating a wonderful, tasty, green hot dish. Remember also that peas are high in protein. What a green mine we have in the simple little pea.

Peas eaten right out of the pod have the highest nutrition but the next best is found in the freezer case. They may lack some of the crispness, but freezing keeps most of the nutrients intact. When cooking, it is always best to steam and not boil them. So enjoy those magnificent little peas!