Spring Pea Bruschetta

I’m feeling spring fever and starting to look forward to Easter! I make this Pea Bruschetta with leek butter as an appetizer for my Easter menu. A warm, thin baguette is sliced and spread with tangy, creamy leek butter and topped with fresh and zesty pea mash with mint, pesto and lemon. It tastes like spring looks: green and bright! The pea mash and leek butter also make a lovely sandwich for lunch and you can toss the peas with warm pasta and sweet pickled onions with plenty of black pepper for supper.

• 10 oz frozen, organic peas
• 1 large shallot, or 2-3 small
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1-2 tbs olive oil
• 2 tbs minced mint
• 2 tbs pesto
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 cup leek butter

1. Add the olive oil to a small skillet on medium heat. When hot, add the shallots and garlic and sauté until translucent.
2. Add the peas, several grindings of salt and pepper and the sugar. Sauté until the peas are hot and bright green. Cool completely on a plate.
3. Partially smash the peas with a fork. Add the pea mixture to a bowl along with the mint, pesto, and lemon juice and stir well to combine. Taste and adjust the salt, pepper or lemon.
4. Assemble the bruschetta by slicing up a warm baguette, you decide the size and shape. Spread each slice with the leek butter and top with a mound of the pea mash. Garnish with microgreens, lemon zest, or pink pickled onions if you like.

Get creative with this recipe by making a sandwich for lunch, tossing with pasta for dinner or dollop into a spring pureed soup, such as pea, celeriac, celery, or asparagus soup. The pea mash will keep in the refrigerator for a week. If it looses some of it’s fresh taste, bring it back to life with a few drops of lemon juice.