I can’t get enough of them during their short season so I buy them every time I go to the market. I’ve tried the shelled bagged fresh peas at Trader Joe’s, but they aren’t sweet like the peas you pop out of the pods and eat like candy. It’s rare for me to be able to hold onto fresh peas long enough to actually use them for a dish, but I managed to this week. I will have a link for you soon to my new recipe for Garlic Shrimp with Fresh Peas, coming up in Food in the New York Times. Meanwhile, this pasta is irresistible. Peas and sweet fresh herbs – tarragon and chives – are a match made in heaven. This is a dinner that is so easy to throw together, as long as you don’t eat all the peas while you’re shelling them. 

Quick! Get those fresh peas before they’re gone for the year!

Linguine with Fresh Peas, Garlic and Tarragon
Yield: Serves 4

Salt

3/4 pound linguine

1 pound fresh English peas (1 cup shelled)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 to 2 garlic cloves or 2 to 3 green garlic cloves, to taste, sliced very thin

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon

2 tablespoons chopped chives

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons finely chopped or finely grated lemon zest (optional)



1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt generously, keeping in mind that you will be adding 1/2 cup of this water to the finished pasta (so don’t be too generous). Add linguine and set timer for 5 minutes less than the cooking time suggested on package. Warm a pasta bowl.

2. Meanwhile combine olive oil and sliced garlic in small skillet or saucepan and heat over medium-low heat until oil begins to bubble around the garlic slices. Watch garlic closely and cook until it just begins to color and smell fragrant. Remove from heat and pour oil and garlic into pasta bowl.

3. When timer goes off add peas to pasta water. Boil for another 5 minutes. Ladle out 1/2 cup cooking water from pasta and set aside. Drain pasta and peas and toss immediately in the warm pasta bowl with oil and garlic, reserved water from the pasta, herbs, Parmesan, and pepper. Serve at once.

Fresh fava beans are one of the best things about spring. I buy them (and fresh peas) whenever I see them, knowing their season is short. Don’t let the task of skinning them keep you from working with favas. Yes, it is necessary and don’t let anybody convince you that it isn’t. But you can get into a rhythm and it can go quickly. Turn on some good music or catch up with those last two episodes of Mad Men that you missed while you pop the favas out of their skins. Here’s how you do it:

Shell the favas. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Fill a bowl with ice water. Drop the shelled fava beans into the boiling water and boil  2 minutes. Drain and transfer immediately to the cold water. Allow the beans to cool for several minutes, then slip off their skins by pinching off the eye of the skin and squeezing gently. Hold several beans in one hand and use your other thumb and forefinger to pinch off the eyes, have a bowl for the shelled favas close at hand and this will not take a very long time. Once you’re done skinning, choose from some of my favorite recipes in my fava bean recipe box on cooking.nytimes.com.

Cinco de Mayo has come and gone but don’t let that stop you from making fabulous Mexican food as often as possible. I have been working with Pati Jinich, host of Pati’s Mexican Table, on her next cookbook, Mexican Today, and I am totally inspired by her incredible recipes. I have always been as passionate about Mexican food as I am about the cuisines of the Mediterranean, and it’s been nice to get back to doing more Mexican cooking. These enchiladas are my most recent creation, very light, vegetarian, easy. I’ve also made a collection on the cooking.nytimes.com site of some of my favorite black bean recipes.

“Austin Caterer Serves Breakfast in Bed.” In the days before Facebook and blogs, when all we had was the Associated Press (AP) and other syndication services, this article went out on the wires to small newspapers all over the country. It was my first claim to fame. 

My partner Terry Tannen and I spent many a busy Mother’s Day running all over Austin, Texas, serving breakfast in bed crêpes and omelets. In this photo we are dressed in our Breakfast in Bed Catering uniform – shiny short gym shorts and tank top. I remembered those days fondly as I worked on a more sophisticated crêpe recipe for Recipes for Health on nytimes.com this week. I hope that you’ll try them for Mother’s Day – or get your family to make them for you!

Craftsy is having a wonderful Mother’s Day Sale. Think of all the skills your mom has given you and give back! Use this link to save up to $20 on all Craftsy classes.