As springtime continues in the northeast, I try to find as many ways as possible to sneak in fresh seasonal green veggies into my daily meal routine. Like this riff on a classic Egg Salad sammie dotted with sweet spring peas and a bed of crunchy green leaf lettuce. I went light on the dill here as my herb of choice, but feel free to substitute your favorite herb, like parsley or chives. Choose a rustic sandwich bread, like a multigrain loaf, that has some hearty heft and can also hold up to the creamy texture of the egg salad mixture. Sneak this into your weekend repertoire or even make these into brunch sliders for your next family gathering. Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup fresh peas
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 Tbsp whole grain mustard
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp fresh dill, finely chopped
1 tsp Tabasco hot sauce
salt and pepper, to taste
8 large hard boiled eggs
8 slices multigrain bread, or sandwich bread of your choice, lightly toasted
1 head green leaf lettuce, whole leaves rinsed and dried
INSTRUCTIONS:
To cook the peas, fill a small pot with water and place over high heat. Separately in a medium size bowl, make an ice water bath for blanching your peas. Once the water has come to a boil, season the water with salt and add the peas. Boil the peas for about 3 minutes or until bright green. Remove the pot from the heat, strain the peas, and submerge in an ice bath to cool.
Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine the shallot, mustard, mayonnaise, dill, hot sauce, salt, and pepper.
Take your hard boiled eggs and coarsely chop them, and stir into the mayonnaise mixture using a fork to gently mash them.
Remove the cooked peas from the water bath, drying them on a towel, and stir them into the egg salad mixture. Taste for seasoning; add more salt and pepper if needed.
Now begin to layer your sandwiches. Line up four slices of the multigrain bread, topping with an even amount of lettuce leaves. Spoon the egg salad mixture evenly onto the four sandwiches, then garnish with more lettuce, if you like. Top with the four remaining slices of toasty bread, and serve the sandwiches for a delicious brunch/lunch feast!