Sugar Snap Peas With Bacon

Snap Peas With Bacon

Sugar snap peas are a favorite at my house.  We eat them by themselves, dipped in ranch dip, in salads, etc.  Last night for dinner, I cooked some snap peas with applewood smoked bacon, a touch of lemon juice, bacon dripping and lemon zest.  There were so tasty.  The bacon dripping slightly coated the peas and the lemon juice and zest added the extra flavor that made the peas delicious.  The peas themselves were crisp just as peas should be.

I found this recipe in Cook's Magazine, but I modified it.  My family isn't crazy about mint in peas.  At times, I try to get by with a very small quantity of mint but I knew there was no way they would touch the peas with 1/2 cup of fresh torn mint leaves.   Needless to say,  I eliminated the mint.   I also eliminated the 4 shallots, sliced thin.  I didn't want the shallots over powering the lemon and bacon flavors.

Another plus for this recipe, is it is easy and quick.  You cook up some bacon, let it cool.. The peas are cooked in a tablespoon of bacon drippings, add some salt and water.  Cover and let them cook 2-4 minutes.  Uncover the peas, and cook until the liquid has evaporated.  Then toss with lemon juice, lemon zest and the bacon.  Season with some salt and pepper and your veggies are ready to be served.
 

Sugar Snap Peas With Bacon
Adapted from Cook's Country Magazine

Ingredients:

4 slices applewood smoked bacon
1 1/2 pound sugar snap peas, strings removed
1/4 cup water
Salt and pepper
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Directions:

1. Cook bacon in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until crispy.  Drain on paper towel-lined plate.  Once cool crumble and set aside.
2. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the bacon drippings.  Pour off the remaining fat.  Heat the one tablespoon bacon drippings and add snap peas, water, and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt.
3. Cover and cook until the snap peas are crisp - 2 to 4 minutes.  Stir half way through cooking.
4. Uncover and continue to cook the snap peas until the liquid has evaporated 1-3 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, lemon zest, and bacon.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve.

Serves 6

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