possibly the best pea soup

possibly the best pea soup

contributed by Nancy
Here is a recipe I made recently with those wonderfully sweet fresh peas. And to think I don’t have to shell them! What a treat!
This is from Mark Bittmans’ column in the New York Times a couple weeks ago. He really focuses on the flavors and tries to let the individual ingredients shine through.  The tarragon adds a wonderful background flavor that really enhances the flavor of the peas. I have made this recipe a couple different ways.  My notes follow the recipe.

1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup finely slice shallots (about 3)
1 clove garlic, chopped fine
1 pound shelled fresh sweet peas
½ tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1/.2 tablespoon salt
pinch pepper
¼ cup half and half or light cream

1.  Heat olive oil in soup pot.  Add shallots and garlic and cook over medium heat until shallots are just wilted.  Add 3 ½ cups water, bring to boil, turn down heat and simmer for ½ hour.
2.  Add peas, tarragon, salt and pepper and bring back to boil. Turn down heat and let simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Puree in a blender in batches until very smooth.  Force through fine sieve into clean pot, discarding small amount of pea skins left in sieve.
3.  Stir in half and half and add salt if necessary to taste.  Can be reheated and served hot or chilled and served cold.

Cook’s notes: I found putting the soup through a fine sieve yielded a thin soup for our tastes. I also think our Alaskan peas are so tender; if you just use your blender you’ll have a great consistency.  I enjoyed it both hot and cold. It was fine without the half and half, but just that little bit really added a lot of flavor and texture.