Steamed Garden Peas

This is an odd year for me in that for the first time in several years I really don't have much in the way of a garden.  We've been here almost two years.  The spring of 2012 we put in a large raised bed and two smaller beds but the combination of the cold, wet spring combined with being in the sunny south for the month of May, followed by flooding in June, very few vegetables got planted this year.  I have a few containers of greens and herbs as well as tomatoes in one of the raised beds, asparagus and strawberries in the others.  It doesn't help that we are doing a complete revamp of our backyard meaning new decks and new sunroom which will see about 95% of our backyard covered in deck and pool.  The whole edible garden area will be revamped as well so at least two beds will be dismantled and rebuilt in the next couple of weeks.  At any rate, I am buying organic produce this year from local growers in lieu of home grown. 

I love garden fresh peas!  They are an early crop that prefers cooler temperatures.  Garden fresh sweet peas were in season when we visited the Niagara area a couple of weeks ago.  These delightfully sweet morsels of goodness are best enjoyed raw or steamed. 

Garden peas steam nicely.  Don't over steam them, just steam until they are al dente.  Quickly remove from the steamer basket.  Stir in a little butter and sprinkle with sesame seeds.  The smaller pods are tender enough to eat.  The larger pods are a bit tougher but they can be enjoyed much the same way you would artichoke by pulling the pod through your teeth. 

Do be sure to enjoy garden peas in season.  They really are delightful!  One variety I like growing is Little Marvel which has large pods with about eight nice sized peas.  In our corner of beautiful Ontario, Canada I plant the first crop in the spring while it is still cool then plant a second crop in the fall as the weather starts to cool again.  I don't worry about preserving them either, just simply enjoy them in season!