Lessons learned

by CSWSmovie

  • Yellow split peas are a grouchy bunch. Don’t be fooled by their innocuous name and sunny color, especially when you’re trying to make soup out of them and it’s a Sunday night and they’ve been cooking for more than two hours and the peas are still not yet softened. The soup was eventually saved but not without a few expletives thrown in there, which will happen when it’s 11:30 pm and you’re dealing with your immersion blender. Note to self: always soak your legumes. You can’t trick them into cooking faster.
  • Prunes are highly underrated, criminally so in my opinion. If you’re one of those people who associate it only with geriatrics, try the recipe below – I think you’ll change your mind.

Hope you’re having a swell week.

Chilled Prunes in Beaujolais
Adapted from A Platter of Figs, by David Tanis

The recipe calls for Beaujolais, that wine that comes out just around the holiday season, but as David Tanis points out, any light-bodied red would do. And because they’re chilled, I personally think this is a great warm weather dessert.

1 1/2 pounds pitted prunes
2 1/2 cups Beaujolais Nouveau or other light-bodied wine
1/2 cup sugar
Cinnamon stick
A slice or two of orange

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat. Chill before serving (overnight or up to several days).

Discard the oranges. Serve each diner a small bowl with a few prunes floating in the winey sauce. This could be great with some thick yogurt or ice cream or even some oatmeal if you have a lazy morning ahead of you, but David recommends serving them “quite cold, chased with the red wine juice.”