I just love fresh peas. Not only are they delicious – crisp and juicy, tasting of pure summer – but they’re fun, too. Unlike their difficult Springtime sister the broad bean, peas require very little in the prep department. There’s no tearing at leathery skins and coaxing beans from their furry beds, before boiling and skinning them individually, Thank God. With peas it’s simply a matter of “zipping” open the pods and pushing out the perfect green jewels within. As monotonous kitchen chores go, pea-podding is pretty great.

There’s probably another reason I love peas so much, and it’s to do with childhood family vacations. See, I come from a family of foragers. My Mum in particular will help herself to anything she finds growing by the side of a country road or along a public footpath; wildflowers, holly for Christmas decoration, berries of all kinds. And many was the time, when driving along some deserted stretch of highway in Nova Scotia or New Brunswick when she would shriek to my father “stop the car!”, and we’d all get out and gather wild peas.

As embarrassing as this could be (and still is- just last year we paused mid-nature walk to forage for wild berries in Suffolk), I didn’t really mind. Who could mind when wild peas are so deliciously snackable? As superior as fresh are, I even like frozen peas; a handful, straight from the freezer, has been a favourite snack for as long as I can remember. Certainly, they’re useful to have when the weather makes successful foraging unlikely.

But it’s July, and here in London we have fresh peas in abundance, and I don’t even have to search for them. No, the farmer’s market is groaning with the things and my mind is racing with all the recipe possibilities. This particular one was inspired by my newest cookbook (and current obsession), Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi. Ottolenghi’s “Green Pancakes“, stuffed with fresh spinach, green onions and chili, caught my attention immediately. But while spinach is all fine and well, I thought adding peas to that batter would be infinitely preferable.

I was right: this was one of the freshest and yummiest breakfast dishes I’ve had in ages. I say breakfast (and I’m putting them in that category), but these would be just as delicious for brunch, lunch or even dinner. If you’re worried about the chili in a breakfast dish, don’t be. They’re spicy, but not overly so; the fresh peas keep things on the sweet side.

The original recipe features a yummy-looking lime butter, but that proved a bit too much work for me. Some regular butter (or yogurt) and a squeeze of lime juice is all these need, though a fresh salad wouldn’t go amiss, either. So, looking for a creative and seasonal spin on pancakes? Or maybe you need something to use up all the fresh peas in your fridge? No need to forage any further.

• Green Pea Pancakes
• adapted from Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi
• serves 3-4
• 130g podded fresh peas
  110g self-raising flour
  1 Tbs. baking powder
  1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
  1/2 tsp. salt
  50g unsalted butter
  150gml milk
  1 large egg
  6 spring onions, finely chopped
  1-2 green chilies, finely chopped
  1/4 cup finely chopped coriander
  zest of one lime
  olive oil for frying
  Greek yogurt, lime wedges or butter, to serve
• 1. Bring a small pot of water to the boil and simmer the peas for 3-4 minutes, until no longer raw but still crunchy. Rinse well in cold water and set aside.
  
  2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices and salt in a medium-sized bowl and set aside. In a small pot or a microwavable dish, melt the butter and allow to cool slightly. Whisk in the milk and egg, and add this to the dry ingredients. Whisk until batter is batter is blended but not perfectly smooth- a couple small lumps are okay. Add the peas, spring onions, chili, coriander and lime zest to the batter and stir well.
  
  3. Heat and non-stick pan over medium-high heat, with just enough olive oil to coat the bottom. For each pancake, use approximately 2 tablespoons of batter- they will be about 1cm thick and 7cm wide. Allow to cook for about 2 minutes on each side, until you get a nice golden-brown colour. Remove to a paper towel while you use up the rest of the batter, adding more oil to the pan as needed.
  
  4. Serve pancakes with lime wedges and Greek yogurt or butter, or Ottolenghi’s Lime Butter.

They do say that necessity is the mother of invention, and though I can’t quite claim to have invented muffin-cup frittatas (it seems that, oh, 90,000-odd people thought of it first), I’d say the phrase definitely rings true here.

As a vegetarian who isn’t particularly interested in developing a protein deficiency, I eat a lot of eggs. Not only for the nutrients they provide, but because they’re just so darn delicious. Scrambled eggs are a favourite around here, as are frittatas and, when I’ve got the time, quiches. The problem with the latter two options is the size issue- a 10″ tart or frittata makes sense for an evening meal or a weekend brunch with company, but not for a solitary, mid-week lunch. Unfortunately, it seems like those times are exactly when I crave this type of food.

The other day was just such an occasion; home alone, only moderately hungry, but craving a frittata. I was all set to ignore my stomach’s rumblings and toast myself an English muffin instead, when I remembered something I’d seen on a favourite blog at least a year ago: miniature frittatas, baked in muffin cups.

The flavours here are a favourite combination of mine, and I like them in any egg dish: frittatas, omelettes or even scrambled eggs. The combination of feta and mint is pure Mediterranean summer, and the addition of pasta gives the frittatas a body and bite that they wouldn’t otherwise have.

To that end, be warned: these adorable and innocuous-seeming little guys are filling. I could barely manage one (though that might have been due to all the snacking I was doing while cooking them- mmm pasta and feta). Luckily they keep well, and are fantastic cold or at room temperature, too.

• Muffin-cup Frittatas with Pasta, Feta and Mint
• makes 4 mini frittatas (perhaps more, if your muffin cups are small)
• 60g linguine, fettucine or other long pasta shape
  3 eggs
  2 Tbs. water
  2 Tbs. finely chopped mint
  2 tsp. finely chopped chives
  sea salt and black pepper, to taste
  40g feta cheese
• 1. Put a large pot of water on to boil, salt it, and cook the pasta according to package instructions. When al dente, drain and rinse with cool water.
  
  2. While the pasta cooks, preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F. Butter the inside of 4 muffin cups very well (or use silicone) and set aside.
  
  3. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with the water, herbs and salt and pepper until well blended. Set aside.
  
  4. Divide the now-cooked-and-rinsed pasta between the four muffin cups. Crumble the feta and divide it between the cups as well, pushing it down in between the pasta. Pour the egg mixture over so that each cup is 3/4 full.
  
  5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until frittatas are just dry and still spongy when touched in the middle. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

We’ve been eating a lot of scrambled eggs lately, both for weekend breakfasts and quick dinners during the week. While 2008 was definitely the Year of the Fried Egg around here, scrambled eggs have emerged as a late frontrunner in 2009. Who knows what next year will hold, but I don’t see our tastes changing anytime soon- they’re simply too delicious.

When I was growing up, scrambled eggs were always my comfort food. My mum made them for me whenever I was sick, worried about something, or had my braces tightened. (Thank goodness, otherwise I would have lived on ice cream and instant pudding alone for several days every three months. Actually, I probably would have enjoyed that.) I liked my eggs cooked quickly over a high heat, with minimal stirring to ensure the desired texture of separate, dry curds. Even a hint of “wet” to my eggs turned me right back to the ice cream.

When I got older and discovered cooking, I realized that my eggs of choice were hardly “choice” at all, according to the culinary elite. Most of my food heroes (Mark, Nigel, Nigella) advocate a slow-cooked, low-heat scramble as one that’s the most authentic. (By authentic I think they mean French; a Cordon Bleu-trained chef would likely regard my childhood eggs as nothing more than a broken-up omelette.) I gradually came around to this method, and these days I cook my eggs ever so slowly over the lowest of heats to achieve the creamiest, fluffiest result.

This recipe was my effort to make my go-to scramble recipe a little more interesting, and perhaps use up some veg from the crisper while I was at it. The sweetness of the corn works so well with the cheese, and makes this good for those who like a sweeter meal in the mornings. It might not be completely authentic, but it sure is good.

Note: I haven’t given cooking times for this recipe, as it really depends on the type of stove you have, and the pan you use. I have gas burners here in the UK, and my eggs become “slow-cooked” within ten minutes. At home in my Mum’s kitchen, with an electric stove and a cast-iron pan, I can stretch that to 20 or 30 if I want to. The point is, the slower the cooking, the creamier the eggs.

• Scrambled Eggs with Fresh Corn
• serves two
• 2 tsp. butter
  kernels from 1 cob of corn, removed like this
  4 spring onions, finely chopped
  1 small red chili, finely chopped
  4 eggs
  2 Tbs. milk
  salt and pepper
  1/2 cup grated cheddar
  2 Tbs. chopped fresh coriander
• 1. Heat the butter over medium heat in a non-stick frying pan. When it foams, add the corn, spring onions and chili and cook for 3-4 minutes. While the corn cooks, whisk the eggs and milk with a pinch of salt and grind of pepper in a small jug.
  
  2. Turn the heat down to very low and add the egg mixture to the frying pan. Let sit for a minute or so, until soft curds begin to form on the bottom of the pan. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, begin to break up these curds and any others that form, keeping the mixture moving all the time.
  
  3. When the eggs are mainly set, add the cheese and coriander. Keep the mixture moving until it’s done to your liking (if you like drier scrambled eggs, simply turn up the heat at this point). Serve with toast.

Before I head out to the farmer’s market, I wanted to share this quick breakfast with you. I made this the other day, when there was almost nothing in the house in the way of food. Seriously- it was one of those days when you wake up inexplicably starving, yet there’s nary an egg, piece of bread or cup of cereal to be found.

Scanning the counter in desperation, my eyes landed on a canister of rolled oats, leftover from my last bout of granola-making. Perfect! It’s getting cool enough to make porridge again, and I figured this hearty breakfast was just what we needed. Andrew looked slightly nonplussed at the idea of porridge, but it didn’t phase me; I knew I could do better than whatever he had in mind.

Grabbing a lonely peach from the fruit bowl, some dried apricots from my baking shelf and some cinnamon from the spice drawer, I got to work. Served with a dollop of crème fraîche, this elevates the humble breakfast porridge to new heights. In fact, when I put these bowls down in front of Andrew 15 minutes later, he responded with “What the hell is this!?” He meant it in the nicest possible way, I assure you.

• Apricot-Cinnamon Porridge with Peaches and Crème Fraîche
• serves 2
• 1 cup rolled oats
  1 cup milk
  1/2 cup water
  1/4 cup dried apricots, roughly chopped
  1/4 tsp. cinnamon
  2 tsp. dark brown sugar
  1 tiny pinch sea salt
  sliced peaches, to serve
  crème fraîche, to serve
• 1. Put the oats, milk and water in a small nonstick saucepan over very low heat. Stir in the apricots, cinnamon, sugar and salt and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the oats have softened and swelled. (You can put the lid on if you feel that the porridge is cooking too quickly or spluttering too violently.)
  
  2. Spoon into bowls and serve with sliced peaches, a dollop of crème fraîche and an extra sprinkling of brown sugar, if you like.

I’m the kind of person who can eat anything for breakfast. While I love sweet treats like sticky buns, home-baked scones or granola, I’m just as inclined to reach for something savoury of a morning. I know people for whom this would be impossible; anything remotely salty passing their lips before noon results in stomach aches and dramatics. Oh well, more for the rest of us.

I also eat a lot of eggs. I think most vegetarians would agree: once you stop eating meat, the humble egg becomes exponentially more important to your diet (unless, of course, you’re vegan). As an excellent source of protein as well as a quick-cooking convenience food, eggs are versatile little superstars in my kitchen.

It stands to reason then, that I eat a lot of savoury egg dishes for breakfast. Fried with homemade baked beans, scrambled with chilies and cheese or in an omelette with mushrooms and herbs. I’ve never been too fond of the poached egg, though. My reaction to cooking an egg in boiling water, without the delicious addition of butter, herbs or even salt and pepper, has always been: what’s the point? Healthy- yes, but interesting? No.

Then I discovered Eggs in Purgatory, a delicious-sounding dish in which the eggs are poached in tomato sauce and garnished with parmesan cheese and basil. I say “delicious-sounding” because I’ve never made it; tomato sauce might be more interesting than water, but it’s not really enough to tempt me. What did tempt me was an Indian dish I came across in an Anjum Anand cookbook several months ago. Her description of poached eggs in a spicy, gingery tomato sauce leapt out at me, and I filed the idea away in my mind.

Last week, I withdrew it; Andrew and I woke up hungry, and luckily everything I needed was at hand. In an effort to make this more of a meal, I added a can of chickpeas to the sauce. The result is a bit like a vegetarian curry with an egg on top: strange in theory (at least for some of us), but wonderful in reality.

Note: I’ve categorized this as a Breakfast, if only because we ate it as that. I’m well aware that curry-for-breakfast isn’t many peoples’ idea of a good time, though. Luckily this would make a delicious dinner.

• Eggs in a Spicy Chickpea Purgatory
• serves 4
• 2 Tbs. butter
  1/2 a large onion, finely chopped
  2 cloves garlic, minced
  1″ chunk of ginger, minced
  1/2 tsp. chili flakes
  1 tsp. garam masala
  1/2 tsp. chili powder
  1/4 tsp. sea salt
  1/4 tsp. sugar
  2 cups passatta (or canned tomatoes, puréed)
  1 x 400g can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained (about 1 cup home-cooked)
  4 eggs
• 1. Heat the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. When it foams, add the onion, garlic, ginger and chili flakes and cook for 4-5 minutes, until soft and translucent.
  
  2. Add the garam masala, chili powder, salt and sugar and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the passatta and bring the mixture to a gentle simmer.
  
  3. Add the drained chickpeas, cover and turn the heat down to low. Cook for 20 minutes, checking and stirring every 5 or so, until the sauce has thickened.
  
  4. Using a potato masher or the back of a spoon, gently crush the chickpeas so that roughly half of them split and break down.
  
  5. Make 4 indents in the top of the sauce with the back of a spoon. One at a time, crack the eggs into a small bowl and slide them into these spaces. When all eggs have been added, cover the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes. They are done when the whites are set but the yolks still soft. Serve as-is, or with toast or crusty bread.

With breakfast more so than with any other meal, I tend to go through phases. I’ll have toast for weeks, or quinoa, or eggs- a few months ago it was fruit smoothies every day. Truthfully, there are only so many things you can eat for breakfast (though Mark Bittman disagrees*), so these phases tend to repeat themselves.

(*I shouldn’t be so dismissive of poor Mark’s savoury-breakfast crusade. After all, my all-time favourite breakfast is cold, leftover pizza.)

One phase that I always look forward to repeating is my granola obsession. While it normally occurs in the cooler months, I’m not immune to it in Summer, either. It struck over the weekend with a vengeance, so I set to work preparing for a granola-centric few weeks.

To be honest, I was never all that fussed about granola before I started making my own, from (who else?) Mark Bittman‘s recipe. Hailing from my cooking bible How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, Mark’s recipe is a bit different from most. Firstly, it uses no oil. I understand that to some granola purists this may seem like sacrilege, but when I first made this, my limited experience didn’t raise any red flags- I simply thought this was the way things were done.

Most granola recipes have you mix everything except the fruit together in a bowl, then roast it in the oven- super easy. Here you add the ingredients one at a time, as the mixture is cooked slowly on the stovetop. Then the whole thing goes into the oven, and as usual, any fruit gets added at the end. (Trust me, you don’t want to forget, put it in with the nuts and end up with rock-hard apricot bits. Not fun.) Sure, this way takes a little longer, but I think it’s worth it, if only for the wonderful toasted-oats smell that will fill your kitchen within minutes.

Over the years I’ve tweaked with the recipe a bit, adding a touch of olive oil to help with “clumping”, and changing the flavourings to suit me. But the best thing about this is that it isn’t so much a recipe as a suggestion, and you can do what you like with it. Change the honey for maple syrup (my favourite when I remember to bring some from home), use any combination of seeds, nuts and fruit that you can think of, add different spices. I’ve made a candied ginger number, a peanut butter version, even one with dried cherries and chocolate chips. 

Kept in an airtight container, granola lasts for months, which is useful to those of us who do breakfast in phases. I seriously doubt you’ll move on while you have any of this left, though. At six cups of granola total and, let’s say 1/3 cup a day, I predict this phase will last… 3 weeks?

• Homemade Granola
• adapted from Crunchy Granola from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian
• makes 6 cups
• 3 cups rolled oats
  1/2 cup seeds (I used sunflower)
  1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds)
  1/2 shredded, unsweetened coconut
  1/2 cup honey (or maple syrup)
  1/4 cup olive oil (optional)
  1 tsp. vanilla extract
  1/2 mixed spice (or use cinnamon)
  pinch of sea salt 
  1/2 cup chopped dried fruit (I used apricots, but consider raisins, cranberries, dried cherries, etc.)
• 1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°C. Mix together the honey, olive oil, vanilla, mixed spice and sea salt and set aside. 
  
  2. In a large cast-iron roasting pan (I use a Dutch oven and it works fine), heat the oats over medium for 3-5 minutes. They will begin to colour slightly, and should smell fragrant.  
  3. Add the seeds and nuts, and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the coconut, and continue cooking for another two minutes. Remove from the heat and add the honey/oil mixture. Stir until everything is well-coated. 
  
  4. Transfer to the oven and roast for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Granola should be golden brown throughout but not burnt anywhere.
  
  5. Remove from the oven and stir in the fruit. Leave to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.  

This morning’s breakfast, made with the leftover danish pastry dough.  Otherwise known as perfection.

• Pain au chocolat
• makes 6
• 1/2 batch danish pastry dough
  100g dark chocolate, chopped finely
  Egg Glaze
  1 egg
  2 Tbs. milk 
• 1. Roll out dough to a large rectangle, 30cm x 45cm, and cut into six 15cm squares.
  
  2. Sprinkle one sixth of the chopped chocolate down the centre of each piece of dough. Fold in thirds, seal the ends and place folded side-down on a baking sheet.
  
  3. Allow to rise for about 1 hour. Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F. Whisk the egg and milk to form a glaze.
  
  4. Brush the glaze over the tops of the pain au chocolat. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden. Cool for 10 minutes before serving. 

To me, Sunday is the best day of the week to enjoy a leisurely brunch. Something about its lazy pace seems particularly suited to sitting down with good company, a mug of coffee and something delicious to eat. Back in my non-cooking university days, this ritual generally took the form of a meal at the pub around the corner from my apartment. My roommate and I would drag ourselves out of bed and make our way, boyfriends in tow, to where delicious homebaked muffins, unnaturally cheerful waiters and (on occasion) strong mimosas awaited us.

These days, Andrew and I are more likely to eat at home, which brings a slight complication to the matter. See, I like to start the week with a clean fridge, so for me, Sunday is also Leftover Day. You might think that leftovers seem incompatible with the goal of enjoying an indulgent midday meal with minimal effort, but you’d be wrong. The answer, as any cook worth her Maldon sea salt knows, is the humble  frittata.

Quick, versatile and tasty, this Italian omelette is a great way to use up whatever you might have hanging around the fridge. Yesterday I had some particularly posh leftovers in mine, courtesy of my parents. They’d been visiting me in the UK for the past two weeks, and before they left on Saturday morning, left me with all the goodies they’d bought but hadn’t finished. These included a handful of blanched asparagus spears, and a piece of grilled salmon that my mum had bought at Ottolenghi, a Mediterranean deli in North London. (I recommend their blog, particularly the recipe for mejadarah- it’s delicious.)

I also had some fresh eggs from the market, some dill in the crisper, and the remains of various bits of cheese. From this random selection of ingredients I managed to create a brunch that, embarrassingly, Andrew and I polished off in completion. 

• Salmon, Asparagus and Dill Frittata
• serves 3-4, unless you’re me
• 5 eggs
  1/4 cup ricotta cheese
  salt and pepper
  8-10 spears of asparagus, blanched and cut into 1″ pieces
  125g cooked salmon, flaked
  2 Tbs. roughly chopped dill, or to taste
  2 Tbs. soft goat’s cheese (or more ricotta, if you prefer)
• 1. Crack the eggs into a large jug. Add the ricotta, salt and pepper to taste, and whisk until the ricotta is mainly incorporated- only small pieces should be visible. Add the asparagus, salmon and dill, and mix gently.
  
  2. Heat a glug of olive oil over medium heat, in a 10″ oven-safe skillet that has a lid. When hot, add the egg mixture, briefly push it around to ensure a nice distribution of the good stuff, and turn the heat down to low.
  
  3. Dot the goat’s cheese or ricotta over the top. Put the lid on the pan and cook for 8-12 minutes, until the frittata is mainly set, but still moist on top.
  
  4. Remove lid, transfer pan to the oven, and cook under the preheated grill until just golden on top. Remove and serve immediately.