#23 - Piselli alla Fiorentina

We were planning on having meatloaf for dinner tonight (tasty Italian this-is-really-a-big-meatball-that-calls-itself-meatloaf meatloaf not gross random-low-quality-meat-covered-in-ketchup-and-shaped-into-a-loaf meatloaf) and we needed a new vegetable side dish. We opened up the Villa cookbook, and found this pea recipe.

Piselli alla Fiorentina

Adapted from The Villa Cookbook
Emily has made a name for herself at the Wheaton Giant deli counter for being the only person to ask for slabs of pancetta. If you don't feel comfortable being that person, you can make this recipe with just regular ham.
After cooking the peas for a little while, we noticed that there still was a lot of water in the pan, so we tried to let some of the liquid escape by using a trick we learned from Nori. Just like she does when making pasta sauce, we rested the lid of the pan on top of a wooden spoon so it's still covered, but some of the steam can get out.
These peas were really easy to make, and they came out pretty good. Seeing that we usually just microwave frozen peas with a little butter, this was only slightly more work and a lot more delicious. If we keep making these though, Emily won't even need to take a number at the deli counter - they'll just have the pancetta ready.
To make your own Florentine peas, do this:

Ingredients

• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 4 oz pancetta, diced
• 1 1/2 lbs frozen petite peas
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tbs parsley, chopped
  

Preparation

1. Heat the olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.
2. Saute the garlic and pancetta for 2-3 minutes, not browning the garlic.
3. Add the peas, water, salt, and pepper, and cook covered for 10 minutes.
4. Rest the top of the sauce pan propped open on a spoon, and cook for 5 more minutes.
5. Adjust salt and pepper to taste and stir in the parsley.