"shelling peas" news and stories

They come loose or in bags, but no matter how you buy them, English shelling peas are a summer treat worth bringing into your kitchen.

Just-shelled peas. Photo: periwinklejane, Flickr

Looking at these just-shelled, fresh-from-the-garden peas, we are inclined to write their life story -- whether accurate or not.

It all started, we suppose, on a crisp spring night, when a hungry grower put down some pea plants after the last major frost of the season. Forgetting about the peas, she let Mother Nature do her thing until one morning the pea planter awoke to find perfectly plump pods ready to be plucked from their vines. She spent the morning and afternoon picking and shelling these sweet green peas, eating many along the way, before delivering them -- in ridiculously adorable baskets, no less -- to her pea-loving friends. (This is where we insert ourselves into the story.) Before making their way into our very happy bellies, these peas were tossed with penne, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

The end.

[Via Flickr]