Recipe by David Lee, executive chef/owner, Nota Bene Restaurant, Toronto
Ingredients:
2 cups sweet English peas
6 cups sweet pea blanching water
sugar and salt to taste
1 tbsp butter, diced
¼ cup crème fraîche
6 slices cooked maple bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
Edible flower petals for garnish (optional)
Method:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season the water with salt and sugar until there is a good balance of salt and sweetness
2. Set up a blender near your cooking surface
3. Set up an ice bath and place a stainless steel bowl over it
4. Once the water has reached a rolling boil, blanch the peas until soft but still bright green.
5. Add the peas and butter to the blender. Purée, adding enough blanching water to produce the desired consistency.
6. If not serving immediately, remove the soup to the ice bath, and cool quickly to preserve the color
7. If you are serving immediately, divide the hot soup equally between four bowls
8. Add a dollop (roughly 1 tbsp. per) of crème fraîche in the middle of each soup bowl
9. Scatter the maple bacon over each bowl of soup
10. Scatter a few edible flower petals over top and finish with a drizzle of olive oil
(Serves 4)
