Friday, December 27

EAT: Black-Eyed Pea Mash



For as long as I can remember, my mother has made a black-eyed pea dish every New Year's Day.  Its a tradition with deep Southern roots, so growing up in Tennessee, I learned about the folklore surrounding the bean at an early age. Supposedly, eating black-eyed peas on the first day of January will bring luck and prosperity in the year ahead. Whether or not you think luck holds much water, traditions like this one are sweet and deliciously comforting!

The most traditional Southern black-eyed pea recipe is the pork heavy, rice and beans based Hoppin' John.  Super yummy, but being a vegetarian, I wanted to share the dish I will be making come New Year's morning.  Its warming and hearty, the quintessential comfort food, and will do wonders to soothe an aching tummy and head that may have over indulged the night before!
Do you have any New Year's traditions?  Whatever they are, we're wishing you a wonderful start to 2014!





7 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium garlic cloves (finely minced)
2 (15 ounce) cans black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 ounces grated sharp cheddar
2 ounces grated Parmesan
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cups kale
4 eggs

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add beans, cream, and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a simmer, then mash beans lightly with a fork or potato masher. Add water as needed until a loose, porridge-like consistency is reached. Stir in cheddar and season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over high heat until simmering. Add kale, season with salt and pepper, and cook, tossing and stirring frequently, until wilted and starting to crisp, about 4 minutes.

Using a tablespoon of oil for each, fry every egg individually. Cook until whites are set but yolks are still runny, about 3 minutes.

To serve, transfer beans to warm bowls, top with sautéed kale and then a fried egg. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve. Serves 4.

*Footnote: I spent a good amount of time trying to construct the perfect black-eyed peas vs. Black Eyed Peas pun while writing this post.  Alas words fail me when it comes to that awful awful band.  I suggest thinking up several of your own jokes when making this recipe ("Mash the beans until a porridge-like consistency, leaving no lovely lady lumps"?)  and then totally share them with me!*

{Lauren}

2 comments:

  1. Yum! So delicious! Thanks for posting this recipe.

    ReplyDelete