Deconstructed Pesto Pea Salad

I had two epic fails while cooking today. I should I have known to stay out of the kitchen since I couldn't even walk and chew gum on the way to the market earlier. When I got home, I attempted to whip up a fun treat to send my mom as a Mother’s Day gift, but unfortunately, I may be sending her flowers instead. I managed to botch not one but two batches of homemade peanut brittle. First, the sugar burned and then the syrup never fully set, leaving a sticky and nutty mess. My back up plan of chocolate and orange truffles was later foiled due to me putting way too much trust into a terrible online recipe. The truffles were such sad little melting blobs, even after I refrigerated and then froze them. I just could not win today.

With my culinary ego thoroughly bruised, I didn’t want to take any chances and fail miserably on a fancy dinner tonight. I settled on a pesto dish that requires absolutely no work whatsoever. You don’t even need a mortar and pestle or food processor for the pesto – keeping it simple tonight! Maybe tomorrow I will locate my motor skills and settle back into the swing of things. And hopefully, once I regain my culinary chops, my mom will be able look forward to receiving something other than flowers this year.



Deconstructed Pesto Pea Salad

Ingredients

Green peas
Fresh basil
Minced roasted garlic
Walnut pieces or pine nuts
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method

Toss cooked green peas with fresh chopped basil, minced roasted garlic, walnut pieces, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.