Posh Peas and Beans on Toast with a Wet Garlic Pesto

The joy of a weekly veg box is one which never seems to get old for me. Each Thursday I am delighted by a cardboard-clad offering of locally grown vegetables and freshly laid eggs from Steepholding (an off grid, small holding on the Devon/Somerset border) and what I get most excited about are the harder to find culinary gems. Whilst the bounty of root vegetables and greens are essential staples of any veg box scheme, it's the fresh chard or the wet garlic that truly motivate me into the kitchen.

The recipe below comes from a veritable bounty of spring time goodness...
The broad beans had a sweetness that is seemingly intensified in an early crop and they perfectly complemented the toothsome haul of spring onions. The wet garlic (essentially young garlic that looks more like a spring onion) also made the perfect base for a zingy pesto.

This is essentially spring on a plate, it's vibrant, tantalisingly inviting and pretty healthy too. Oh and it's vegan too. Incidentally, my favourite kinds of vegan and vegetarian dishes are the ones where such credentials are indeed incidental. If you can say, "oh it's veggie too" as some kind of afterthought, then something must be going right.

Posh Peas and Beans on Toast with a Wet Garlic Pesto

The Topping:

Mushrooms, roughly chopped - a couple of large portobellos were used here but what ever you have on hand will do.
A handful each of peas and broad beans
1 bunch of spring onions (or scallions for those stateside), finely chopped
Pinch of chilli flakes
Olive oil for frying

In a frying pan, heat the oil and fry the mushrooms for 3-4 minutes. Don't move them around too much as you want them to brown as they cook and not release too much liquid.

Now add in the rest of the ingredients with plenty of salt and black pepper.

Cover and cook for 3-4 minutes until the peas and beans are tender.


The Pesto:

This is pretty simple, whizz up the following ingredients in a blender:

Two wet garlic stems (alternatively try wild garlic if you can find it or a clove of normal garlic)
Squeeze of lemon juice (about half a lemon but adjust according to taste)
Handful each of parsley and basil
Handful of cashews
1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional but it gives a lovely depth of cheesy flavour)
3-4 tbsp good olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste


The assembly:

Top a couple of slices of chewy sourdough toast with the posh peas and beans mix and then dollop on the pesto.

I was tempted to put blue cheese on the top of mine but I was cooking for a Vegan pal and I decided not to. I have no doubt it would have been delicious however I'm rather pleased I didn't though because it was perfectly delectable just as it was.