Sometimes Mom put things on the table for holidays that, frankly, made no sense whatsoever. Who feeds kids peas and onions for Christmas? A sadist?
What I didn't know was that Christmas wasn't just about kids! It was about the grown-ups too and, in my parent's cases, the grown-up food favorites, though we kids were expected to at least try some.
In the 40s and 50s, different vegetables were often combined to make a small amount of each go further. This would usually be the "last" of the fresh garden veggies from summer or fall if fresh. If canned or frozen, they could be from the store.
As I recall, Mom bought her peas two ways. One was the commercially canned peas, the tiny ones called LeSeur she used in her pea salad.
The other way was frozen. And she bought huge packs of them, too. That's because she used them a lot.
Frozen peas had the benefit of having been pre-blanched so you could easily defrost them and use them in a variety of dishes. One of those was her Peas and Pearl Onions in Butter Sauce.
Pearl onions aren't in favor the way they once were but in better groceries, you can still find them in either frozen or fresh, if fresh, get ready for a long session of blanching and peeling- which can send you reeling! lol.
- 1 10 oz pack of frozen English or regular peas, defrosted
- 1 bag of frozen pearl onions [note: if you can't find them, try going to the local booze shop and getting some cocktail onions, it will cost more but if you need them you need them! Remember: these are usually seasonal item in stores!]
- 1/2 stick butter (not margarine)
- 1 tsp or to taste of chopped, fresh rosemary
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Saute the pearl onions and peas in a pan until they are warmed through (about 5-8 minutes on medium heat, stirring constantly)
- Sprinkle in the chopped rosemary, salt, and pepper, and cook a minute or two longer
- Serve warm
If you're doing this from frozen, make sure you saute until all the water is out of the pan.'