Lemon Parmesan Green Peas

I really love when someone takes an old recipe and puts a new spin on it!

Meatloaf muffins frosted with mashed potatoes.  Mini Beef Wellingtons.  Macaroni and cheese with bacon.

Sometimes the new recipe becomes a “sometimes” alternative.  And sometimes, it improves on the original so much that you never look back!

For my family, this is one of those recipes.

Michael and I both grew up with our moms serving LeSueur baby green peas from a can.  When I was younger, I loved their sweet flavor.  But as I grew older, my dislike for the mushy texture overcame my love of the sweetness.  My kids have grown up with frozen green peas.  I like cooking with them because I can cook them without cooking them to death.  My kids have such a fondness for green peas that one of the meals I’m most often requested to make is Mac & Cheese & Peas.  It’s just my macaroni and cheese with frozen green peas stirred in.  They love it!

Michael is not a fan.

Don’t get me wrong.  There are some foods that I prefer cooked to death.  Broccoli, for example.  I either want it totally raw (and dipped in ranch dressing or nacho cheese) or cooked until it’s soft.  I don’t like anything in between.  Cabbage is another “all or nothing” food for me.

But not green peas.

This recipe not only lets me cook the peas the way we like them.  It also adds so much flavor and yum factor to them.

Lemon Parmesan Green Peas

• 3 tablespoons of butter
• 3 shallots, sliced thinly
• 24-ounce bag of frozen green peas, thawed
• 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan
• Juice of 1 lemon – should be about 1/4 cup
• Parmesan shavings for garnish

In a skillet, sautee shallots in butter until soft and translucent – 3-4 minutes.  Add the peas to the pan and stir for about five minutes until peas are softened, but not mushy – about 5 minutes.  Peas should still be vibrant green.  Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and grated Parmesan.  Pour into a serving dish and top with Parmesan shavings.

Well Duh #1:  The Parmesan shavings are, of course, optional.  But they’re so pretty!  I just used a vegetable peeler on a block of Parmesan.

Well Duh #2:  Elizabeth is our hothead lately.  She added Cajun seasoning AND a little Tabasco to her peas for added flavor.

Well Duh #3:  If you’ve never used shallots, you can find them somewhere around the onions and garlic in the produce section.  My grocery store actually had three little shallots in a mesh bag. They must have known I was coming!  If you absolutely cannot find shallots – and trust me, I get it!  Sometimes you just can’t! – you can use a half of a yellow onion that you have minced finely.

These were even good the second day when I warmed up leftovers!  Elizabeth and I really loved them.  Christopher was in a mood, so he ate them, but he refused to say that he liked them.  Michael is low-carbing again (Heaven help us all!), but he climbed off the low-carb horse and ate these peas happily.  He really liked the texture and flavor.

As I said, I love a good recipe re-do.  It takes everything you love about your favorite classic and twists it into something that you love even more!  And what’s not to love about that?