Easy Pea Salad Recipe

I added yellow and red onions to this easy pea salad. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Easy Pea Salad Recipe

This is one of those quick and easy recipes that should be in the American Cooking Encyclopedia, it comes in handy for a variety of occasions. I have used this is as both a main salad as well as a side dish, both cold and warm. It’s best cold for a summer dish and warm for a winter side dish.

You can alter the ingredients to taste. I tend to add more celery and onions.

I also like that it takes only a small amount of mayonnaise to bring all ingredients together.

If I have a choice, I would let this sit overnight so the flavors marinate.

To mak

1 can drained peas

1 shelled hard boiled egg

1/2 cup chopped fresh celery

1/4 cup chopped yellow and/or red onions

1 tbsp mayonnaise

salt to taste

To make: Mix together. You can add a second egg if you want more egg and a dash of milk if you want more coating on the peas.

Cover and allow to marinate for a couple of hours or overnight for the cold version.

Serve immediately if you want it served warm.

Charlotte

Fall Pea Salad Recipe

Fall Pea Salad Recipe

This is an easy to make and delicious pea salad and side dish. It reminds me of some of the recipes in one of my favorite recipe books, In the Kitchen with Rosie.  I make it several times a year with different added ingredients. For fall, I use my last of the season cherry tomatoes, which ripened inside and have a little tang to them.

Here is the basic Fall Pea Salad Recipe:

1 can of peas

1 hard boiled egg

1 stalk of celery

1 tablespoon of mayonnaise

a dash of salt

To make, drain the can of peas and place in a container.

Cut up the stalk of celery into small pieces. I cut the celery stalk in half, then cut the halves yet again but chopping up the first halves works well, too. It's a matter of preference.

Divide a washed celery in half before chopping into smaller pieces.

Personally I prefer the crisp celery pieces to be in larger pieces because I like the crunch but if you want them smaller, go for it.

Celery pieces can be any size you like, I like mine big enough to enjoy the crunch.

Also chop up one hard-boiled egg into smaller pieces and mix with the peas and celery.

Leave the hard boiled egg pieces in larger chunks so you can still see them in the salad.

This is my stash of the last of my cherry tomatoes. Most were green when I brought them in, and some are past their prime. I like to add them to this salad for color and the little bite they add to the other ingredients.

These are the last of my cherry tomatoes, picked the night before the first hard frost.

I cut the cherry tomatoes in half, then slice them once more and mix them with the rest.

Add a dash of salt, mix again, and then add the tablespoon of mayonnaise. The less you use, the better, this only needs a little bit of mayo so if you want to cut back, start with a teaspoon and add if you want more.

Finished fall pea salad with the last of my cherry tomatoes. So good the next day, too!

If you need to stretch the servings, you can add another can of peas, more celery and eggs. Mix the added ingredients before you add more mayonnaise, you may not need any extra.

Once all mixed, you can serve or store in refrigerator for later use. I also like this fall pea salad the second day, when all of the flavors have had time to mix.

This is also a refreshing summer salad or side dish, and in spring I add a few native violets, that version is very pretty. Great little salad to throw together when you have last-minute visitors, too. Enjoy!

Charlotte

Steamed Basil Carrots

I ran across this recipe years ago and am still amazed at how simple, and delicious, it is.

Scrub fresh carrots. Don't bother to peel them if you've washed them well.

Quarter carrots into equal-sized strips; steam in steamer until done, about 8 minutes.

Add cut up fresh basil or, when you can't find where you put it, dried basil leaves.

The original recipe called for a drizzle of melted butter but I stopped doing that one night when I was short. If you want a little more flavor, dry a butter flavor substitute. Toss until fully covered. I prefer to eat it warm but

it's also good cold as next day left-overs.

Charlotte