' HOMAGE TO THE PEA .'

Green Pea & mint mousse served on Smashed peas with Chickpea fritters and a salad of Zucchini ribbons, Garden podded peas, pea greens & flowers.

                   Spring is definitely upon us here in Brisbane, Queensland and the day and night temps have climbed. With the onset of the warmer weather means the humble pea leaves the garden and its space becomes quickly replaced by beans. So as a way to say goodbye to winter and embrace the warmer months of spring and summer I've done a little homage to the pea. This dish is playful and pays tribute to the pea in its many different parts and stages of the plant, presented using a wide variety of cooking techniques from its raw state to a light creamy mousse to sweet and savoury fried fritters.
                   To make the pea mousse I cooked 300g of peas in salted boiling water until soft and tender, 100g of these were then placed into the blender with 100ml of milk, 100ml of cream and some finely chopped mint. This was then blended until smooth and poured into a small saucepan with a tsp of agar agar and brought to the simmer, whisking to dissolve the agar. I then separated some of the mixture and added some pure pea puree to make a greener tone. This was then spooned into a mould and placed into the fridge for a minute or two before pouring the rest of the original lighter coloured mixture on top, filling the mould. This was then placed in the fridge for half an hour to fully set before being un-moulded. For the fritters, I placed 100g of the cooked peas in a mixing bowl and mashed them until roughly smashed. To this I added 1 egg, 100ml of buttermilk, minced onion, 1/2 tsp of turmeric, 1/4 tsp of garam masala and seasoning of pepper and salt. This was all whisked to incorporate and put some air in the mixture before adding 50g of chickpea flour, 50g of plain flour and a 1/4 tsp of baking powder. With a wooden spoon I brought the mixture to a drop batter consistency. I then heated some ghee in a shallow frying pan and fried spoonfuls of the batter in batches, cooking for 2-3 minutes on each side. They were then drained on paper towel seasoned with citron salt and served warm. With the final 100g of cooked peas I mashed them in a bowl roughly with some olive oil, apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper. This dressing was also used to dress all the fresh greens and zucchini ribbons.