More gratin dish adventures + dried legumes!
Saturday, March 14, 2009
It’s just cold enough this weekend to want to bake some dinner. And, I wanted to use up some dried black-eyed peas from Margerum’s, some local mushrooms about to go to the bad, homemade turkey broth (from a TGiving breast from Highland Orchards), super-dessicated (= old and forgotten at back of dark cupboard) dried tomatoes, sausages, and a surplus of fresh parsley and dill.
I don’t measure when I’m cooking, but I can render the basic idea for your own interpretation.
1) soak peas overnight, (water outdoor plants w/the water), simmer til almost tender (abt. an hour) w/salt, half an onion
2) coat gratin dish w/olive oil
3) mix peas w/herbs: I had dried thyme and oregano from last summer, plus fresh parsley and dill.
4) add to the peas two crushed garlic cloves, halved mushrooms, dried tomatoes, black pepper.
5) spread in the dish, place sausages on top. Add enough broth to almost come to top of peas.
6) bake w/loose foil for about 45 mins, then uncover for another 30 mins or until peas are where you want them (mine were still toothsome).
7) juice a lemon and pour over the dish.
There will be a wonderful lemony-sausagey herbed sauce in the dish—I mashed my black-eyed peas in it. Try your own version!
Posted by Allison on 03/14 at 06:28 PM
Mango Child,
A quartered red pepper would be great as a substitute (it would roast and juice out along the way). I’d have added carrots if I had any. Squashes on top? And for liquid instead of turkey broth, vegetable broth or water plus lots of different onions (leeks, shallots)—finely grated white/yellow onion is a nice way to add flavor, too.
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It seems like the cozy casserole days are coming to an end… yours looks like an easy way to take advantage of how good they are. I don’t eat meat, but your method would be simple to make quick substitutions and enjoy - especially the idea of the mashed black eyed peas.