Pea and broad bean tagliatelle

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 good handful of fresh peas
1 good handful of broad beans
1 large knob of butter
3 tbsp olive oil
½ handful of mint
½ handful of parsley
½ cup of dry white wine
1 tsp lemon zest
1 clove garlic
220g tagliatelle (preferably cooked from fresh)
salt and black pepper to season

Method

Put the olive oil, butter, garlic, peas and broad beans in a pan and cook for a minute. Now add the wine, mint, parsley and lemon zest, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Cook the tagliatelle until al dente, drain then stir in the sauce. Season to taste.

Commentary

There are two classic British combinations in this recipe. The first is peas and broad beans, seasonal summer victuals at their best. The second is peas and mint (normally with just a little bit of added butter), a nourishing and refreshing pair perfectly matched to hot, lazy days.

This recipe adds a little to those combinations to make it light and refreshing but sustaining; the ideal summer lunch. The sustaining bit comes from the fatty or dense richer components, butter and olive oil (fatty) and tagliatelle, broad beans and peas (sweet, dense and protein rich). Refreshment comes from the bitter and sour flavours. Bitterness is found in the parsley and lemon zest. Sourness is founded on the white wine, with a little help from the lemon zest, whose acidity melds with the butter and olive oil to lighten the sauce and enhance its digestibility.

Finally we need some aromatic and spicy elements to stimulate motility and secretion. These come from mint, parsley, lemon zest and garlic (aromatic) and black pepper (spicy).

Overall the flavour profile of this dish is sweet, sour and aromatic, matching it to hot and dry weather, the stuff that British dreams are made of!

Variations

It is unusual to get periods of sustained (i.e. longer than a month) dry weather in Britain, which means that this recipe probably needs adapting for rainy times. This is easily done, just pop in a mild deseeded chilli to add a little spice which stimulates circulation and motility in the gut.

Otherwise, in the improbable circumstance that the weather is searingly hot and very dry (or if you’re on holiday in the desert), add more raw chopped mint at the end. This will moisten the dish and add more fresh aromatic oils to cool and calm the gut.