Make Ahead

Justin Burdett's Chilled English Pea Soup with Garlic Cream & Pickled Ramps

June  4, 2013
4.3
3 Ratings
Photo by James Ransom
  • Serves 4 as an appetizer
Author Notes

A chilled soup that (finally) feels like soup -- thanks to a clever blanching technique and some seductive spring trimmings. Adapted from Chef Justin Burdett of Ruka's Table in Highlands, North Carolina. —Genius Recipes

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • English Pea Soup
  • 4 quarts water, divided
  • 1/2 cup kosher salt, divided
  • 1 quart shelled fresh English peas
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 1 spring onion, chopped
  • 3 to 4 basil leaves
  • 3 to 4 mint leaves
  • 2 to 3 sprigs of dill
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • Black pepper, freshly ground to taste
  • Garlic Cream and Pickled Ramps
  • 1 head of garlic, peeled and chopped
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • Salt, to taste
  • 1 quart Mason jar, filled with ramp bulbs
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
  • 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 1 sprig of fresh thyme
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
Directions
  1. English Pea Soup
  2. In a large pot, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil with about a ¼ cup of kosher salt. Add the peas and allow the water to come back to a boil for a full minute.
  3. Prepare 2 quarts of iced water with ¼ cup of kosher salt in it and strain your peas out of the boiling water immediately into your salted iced water. Allow peas to chill all the way down.
  4. Take your chilled peas and ½ of the salted iced water and place them in a large container. Add the buttermilk, spring onion, herbs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and black pepper. Allow mixture to sit and marinate for 20 minutes.
  5. Blend mixture until smooth and pass through a basket strainer or sieve.
  6. To assemble the dish, ladle the chilled soup into individual cups or serving bowls. Top with a tablespoon of garlic cream (recipe to follow) and garnish with a pickled ramp (recipe to follow). Serve immediately.
  1. Garlic Cream and Pickled Ramps
  2. Make Garlic Cream: In a small sauce pot, cook garlic and butter over low heat until the garlic is golden brown. Add the cream and salt to taste and simmer the mixture for 15 minutes. Place mixture in a blender and blend until smooth.
  3. Make Pickled Ramps: Toss the ramp bulbs with the seeds and spices, and place into the Mason jar.
  4. In a medium pot, bring the vinegar, water, sugar and salt to a boil. Once boiling, pour the liquid immediately (it’s important that it’s still hot) into the Mason jar filled with ramp bulbs and spices. Tap the jar to allow air bubbles to escape, then seal it and cap it according to the directions on the Mason jar. (If not sealing by the pickling directions on the jar, be sure to refrigerate.)
  5. Allow it to sit for at least 24 hours before using so the vinegar has time to fully penetrate and marinate the ramps.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • EllnMllr
    EllnMllr
  • Mlouise
    Mlouise
  • DrTeresa
    DrTeresa
  • Kristen Miglore
    Kristen Miglore
Genius Recipes

Recipe by: Genius Recipes

6 Reviews

Lee August 12, 2015
Is it possible to get calorie and fat content on recipes at Food 52?
Love the idea of this dish but am tracking the above.
 
EllnMllr May 25, 2014
Agree about the 'too salty' comment. I checked and double checked. If I were to make it again I'd cut that at least 50 percent. The garlic cream does tone it down. Hoping our guests will like it tonight.
 
Mlouise June 18, 2013
A little too salty for my taste...I re read the directions to make sure I was doing it correctly.
 
DrTeresa June 9, 2013
is the sugar necessary to the pickling? If not, have you tried it without? Trying to avoid sugar
 
chrisanne June 5, 2013
whats the quantity of buttermilk please?
 
Kristen M. June 5, 2013
Sorry for the confusion! I've updated the recipe -- it's 2 cups.