Friday Flashback: Mushy Peas

Last night we had fish and chips and mushy peas for dinner. Okay, actually we had fish sticks and crinkle cut fries and the mushy peas were made with Lactaid instead of heavy whipping cream, so it wasn't quite the British feast I had envisioned...

But the point of the post is that we had mushy peas - a staple in any little British kid's diet, but not quite as staple in an American kid's diet.

When I was in the UK during my college semester abroad, I lived with a host family that had a three-year-old boy called Finleigh. And Finleigh, along with his five-year-old BFF named Rhonan, LOOOOOVED mushy peas. I can still hear the two little boys chanting, "Mushy Peas! Mushy Peas! Mushy Peas!" their forks banging the kitchen table as their mummies came back from the fish and chip shop down the road with packets of fried cod drenched with salt and vinegar, and little side cups of mushy peas.

I'm just going to go ahead and say my kids thought mushy peas were about as delicious as throw up. In fact, just asking them to finish their mushy peas last night was like asking them to rip their own teeth straight out of their heads and then dance an Irish jig. They thought Will and I were insane for even suggesting it.

And it reminded me of the time I made a PB&J sandwich for three-year-old Finleigh, after staring at him in shock when I learned that British kids just did not mix jam/jelly with peanut butter. I smiled the entire time I spread the bread with peanut butter and strawberry jam, imagining the way his big brown eyes would light up with his first bite, and he'd say something like, "Ooooh, yummy!" sounding just like Charlie from Charlie and Lola.

When he took a bite, however, he acted like I was trying to kill him. Those big brown eyes of his rolled back in his chubby little head, and he shook his cornrows around as he gagged and coughed and choked as though I'd fed him a rat poison sandwich instead of an all-American staple.

Funny how what seems so completely normal to eat in one country is so completely NOT NORMAL in another.

Have a flashback of your own to share? Head on over to Tia's blog for Flashback Friday!

And want to make some mushy peas? Here's a recipe! (which I copied straight off of Allrecipes.com)

Mushy Peas

• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen green peas
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring a shallow pot of lightly salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add frozen peas, and cook for 3 minutes, or until tender.
2. Drain peas, and transfer to a blender or large food processor. Add cream, butter, salt and pepper to peas, and process until blended, but still thick with small pieces of peas. Adjust seasonings to taste, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

(Or not...)

But most importantly, Happy Friday, folks!

xoxo,