This might sound a bit la-dee-dar, but it’s the simplest thing ever. Sweet, salty and fresh.
How summery and amazing was this? Incredibly. I don’t think I need to tell you how good it was. Summer to the max. The sweetness of the peas and the aroma of the mint tasted amazing once some salt and olive oil had been added. Add to that some dense french bread that stayed chewy on the inside and crunchy on the outside and you have yourself a massive winner.
Today is summer solstice, supposedly the longest day of the year. This weekend was full of celebrations of summer, some more wholesome than others. I went to Rock the Garden, a mini music festival in Minneapolis and saw Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings and MGMT rock it out.
I also drank beers and rode my bike home via a restaurant called Little Tijuana’s so I could get somewhat questionable Mexican food. It was good. In a messy way.
Sunday, after a gloriously healing brunch (egg-hashbrown-bacon extravaganza, a ton of coffee and the NYT crossword, if ya wondering) we hit up the St. Paul Farmers Market. Here are some things I love about this market:
1. It’s not gigantic, like some Farmers Markets and is therefore manageable to walk around when you just ate your body weight in eggs and bacon.
2. They have some rule where everything sold must have been grown within 30 or 50 miles of the market. No pineapples here.
3. They have loads of flowers and they are awesome.
4. They had all the ingredients for smashed peas with mint bruschetta.
Smashed Peas with Mint Bruschetta
adapted from Real Simple
Ingredients
- 1/2 baguette
- 10 oz fresh garden peas
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Directions
- Thinly slice half a baguette. Place the rounds on a baking sheet and broil them until they’re golden brown (about 1 1/2 minutes per side).
- Process the peas in a food processor until roughly chopped. Stir in the mint, oil, salt, and pepper.
- Spread the mixture on the rounds. Garnish the bruschetta with fresh mint leaves, if desired.
Oh and the best thing? Leftover mint = mojitos. Which obviously = win.
So, we’re done with Spring and Summer is officially here to kick our arses with heat, humidity and long sweaty bike rides.
What Summer foods are you most excited to eat?
Me, I am itching to go blackberry picking and to try my hand at something wondrous, baked and bad for me. Yum.
