Pea, Spring Onion and Lettuce Soup
serves 4

2 heads baby gem lettuce
1 cup shelled fresh peas
4 spring onions
3 cups water
50 g/ 3 T butter
1 cup cream
salt and  pepper
pea shoots to garnish

Start by cutting the lettuces in half lengthwise, and then cut each half into thirds, also lengthwise. Try to keep a bit of the root intact on each piece, so the leaves hold together. Cut the spring onions into 1/2 inch long pieces.
Put the lettuce, peas, and onions into a saucepan, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover with the water, add the butter and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the peas and lettuce are completely tender. You don’t really want any crunch left in the veggies for this soup.

Strain the vegetables from the broth, reserving both. Divide the vegetables equally among four bowls. Mix the cream into the broth and then ladle into the bowls. Garnish with pea shoots and serve.

 

Boiled Peanuts Recipe

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 2 hours, 30 minutes

You can easily double or triple or quadruple the recipe ingredients. The longer the peanuts cook, or sit in the salty water, the saltier they will become. Also the longer the peanuts cook, the softer the shells will become. Some people prefer their peanut shells soft and almost chewy, some prefer a little firm so you can pry open the shells.
If you are making boiled peanuts for the first time, work with a small batch (like the one pound recipe that follows). If they end up too salty, use less salt the next time. If you like them softer, cook them longer. The inside nuts themselves should be completely soft. If crunchy or crisp, they need to cook longer.

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Ingredients

• 1 pound of raw "green" peanuts (not the color green, but fresh raw peanuts which are called green peanuts)
• 1/4 cup kosher salt (or 2 Tbsp table salt)
• 4 cups water

Optional seasoning

• 2 Tbsp Old Bay Seasoning, smoked paprika, shrimp boil mix, or even star anise

Method

1 Thoroughly rinse raw unshelled peanuts in water.

2 Put water, salt, seasoning, peanuts in a large stockpot. Bring to a low boil. Cover and reduce the heat just enough to maintain a low boil. Boil for 2 to 3 hours or longer (some boil their peanuts all day), until peanuts reach desired level of softness.
3 Drain. Eat up within a couple of days. Boiled peanuts don't save as well as dry.

Strawberries!!!