Before pea shoots, which are the leaves of the pea plant, arrived in my CSA box several weeks ago, it never would have occurred to me to cook with them. I had the same reaction to kale, though, and it grew to be one of my favorite vegetables this winter. In fact, I often crave it. The first time the pea shoots appeared, I did what I always do with strange vegetables: sautéed them with olive oil and garlic. I decided I could do a little better with the second round, so I looked for inspiration on the web. I found an article on Bay Area Bites that had some great ideas and two delicious-sounding recipes. I decided to go for the pasta recipe, Pea Shoot Pasta Sautéed with Bacon and Lemon Zest, in order to make a complete meal.
You can find the recipe (and read more about pea shoots) here. The recipe called for a pound of pasta, but I only used 12 ounces of fresh pasta, and it made two healthy dinner portions for people who had just run, plus another lunch serving. This was an incredibly quick dinner to prepare, and it was a very tasty and light-ish pasta dish. I give this recipe a 7 for Deliciousness and a 2 for Effort, giving it an EDR of 3.5. I definitely recommend celebrating spring with pea shoots on your plate. They quite possibly could be the new kale.
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