#spring meal

My sorority sister gifted us an Instant Pot, and since we are in a small space, the smaller pot is a welcome addition that will replace the larger slow cooker for our mini-meals. Risotto seemed like the perfect first recipe since the whole point of the pot is to skip the constant stirring. I had the extra pressure of competing with my partner’s amazing traditional method, so I started with an…

Vignole on Saturday 26 May 2018

We have asparagus. We have peas. We have freezer drawers full of broad beans from last year that I desperately need to use before replenishing with this year’s crop. It was time to make vignole.

This is my variation of the Roman spring vegetable stew that is based on Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe found in the Guardian. (Note the dates. It was providence.)

Stewing young, bright green, tender vegetables might feel counter-intuitive, but it does work. It enhances their sweetness, and gazing upon a panful of verdant abundance inspires a feeling of gratitude like little else.

I used asparagus, mange-tout-type peas, and broad beans, because this is what we have. Use these as part of a mixture that might well include artichokes, sugar snaps, frozen peas, and spinach or chard, if you want. 

I used pearled spelt because I can eat it; Ottolenghi uses orzo in his version, which cooks far quicker and goes in with the mange-tout and asparagus (and needs less liquid). Many traditional recipes won’t have any grain in it at all. Use it or don’t. It really is up to you.

Serves 4

3 perpetual onions, or one small onion, sliced

4 cloves garlic, sliced

50ml olive oil

175g pearled spelt

750ml water

1 lemon

450g fresh peas in their pods, to be eaten whole (so mange-tout), trimmed

400g asparagus, cut into 3cm lengths

350g podded broad beans

Sprig of fresh mint

Salt and pepper

Wash the spelt and leave it to soak in cold water while you prepare the mange-tout, asparagus, alliums, and the broad beans.

Boil the broad beans for six or seven minutes, until they are tender. Refresh them under cold water and set them aside.

In a large lidded pan, heat the olive oil and add the onion and garlic. Cook the alliums gently for five minutes until the garlic begins to take on some colour.

Use a vegetable peeler to skim five slices of pith-free lemon peel from the fruit. Toss these into the hot oil, followed by the drained spelt. Turn it around in the hot oil before adding the water, and a generous helping of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a lively simmer for ten minutes.

While the spelt is cooking, you can do some bean-podding. Slip the bright green beans out of their grey, papery envelopes.

After ten minutes, tip in the mange-tout and asparagus. If it is looking a little dry, add some more water. Keep in mind that the final dish shouldn’t be dry, but isn’t a soup. It’s somewhere in between. Cover the pan again and continue to cook over a medium to medium-low heat for another ten minutes. (You don’t want it boiling, but there needs to be enough action that things are cooking.)

Meanwhile, you’ll still be podding beans. Trust me.