On the Table

Peas have always been a favorite of mine.

Growing up, my brother and I constructed miniature forts out of slabs of meatloaf, held in place by a mortar of mashed potatoes. We shingled our little roofs with green peas before we dug in to eat--a perfect dinnertime combination, in both form and function.

Every summer we were put to work in the family garden, picking rows of sugar snap peas--not just for our table, but for the half dozen neighboring tables along our cul-de-sac. They were always worth the work, and while I haven't found sugar snap peas as sweet and tender as my dad's, peas are easy to find right now at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market.

This salad is made from Brines Farm arugula, fresh peas (blanched first) and mint, tossed in a bit of olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and topped with shaved Parmesan. It hit the spot for dinner tonight, with the sweet peas and mellow mint providing the right foil against the spicy greens.

Below: (Summer 2006) My dad gets an early start on breaking in the next generation of pea-picking slave labor.