This Cold Green Pea Salad with Bacon & Peanuts is SO easy to make! Nourishing & flavorful, with only 5-ingredients~serve it at your next picnic or potluck, or as an easy side dish everyone will love!
This month’s Recipe ReDux theme is “Vintage Side Dishes”…
Share the story of your favorite family side – or a tale about how you ReDuxed a recipe from an old cookbook or recipe card. Be it from the era of your great-grandmother, or your mom’s kitchen experiments, please tell us how your ‘old-fashioned’ side dish became a vintage favorite again.
Being a huge believer that food is more than just nutrition for our bodies, but also nourishment for our souls’, this ReDux is near and dear to my heart.
Although I try to create memorable moments around my kitchen table throughout the year, there’s no denying the cherished memories crafted from family holiday meals.
For me, the “vintage” sides from my childhood include brown sugar glazed carrots, asparagus with hollandaise {I’m pretty sure the hollandaise came from a can, but it definitely inspired me to eat my veggies}, my mom’s best ever homemade yeast rolls, and of course, the infamous black cherry jello salad with pecans and sour cream. Everyone’s family has a jello salad recipe, right?
Don’t worry though.
As delicious as it is, I’m not whipping up any jello salad for you today.
Instead, I have created a “new” vintage recipe that comes from my Great Aunt Sena’s recipe collection which was handed down to my dad, who handed it down to me.
Some of you may recall my Great Aunt Sena’s infamous Persimmon Pudding recipe, which I adapted to a gluten-free version last year. Oh, my goodness…talk about delicious fresh whipped cream topped childhood food memories!
My Great Aunt Sena was a pretty amazing cook, and one of the sweetest ladies you ever might meet, so it’s an honor to have her recipes in my collection, including President Eisenhower’s Beef Stew, Greek Lemon Soup {making this soon!}, a curious Corned Beef Salad that has lemon jello in it {um…think I’ll pass on this one!}, and this vintage Cold Green Pea Salad recipe I chose to make for you today, because, one, I really like peas, and, two, I thought it was perfect for an easy ReDux.
The original recipe is super simple: Frozen peas, green onions, salted peanuts, chopped celery, sour cream, and crisp bacon.
But, with a few easy swaps, this cold green pea salad gets a healthy & delicious makeover!
Bacon lovers, don’t worry. I didn’t take out the bacon, but I did switch out the sour cream for Greek Yogurt to lighten the calories and add more protein. I also omitted the celery {don’t care for it much unless it’s in my own homemade tuna salad}, and used red onions instead of green for a little added crunch.
Here’s the recipe…
Cold Green Pea Salad with Bacon and Peanuts
Ingredients
- 1 10- ounce package frozen green peas, thawed and drained {may thaw the night before}
- 1 cup Greek Yogurt
- 1/2 cup red onions, finely chopped
- 6 slices bacon, cooked until crispy & crumbled
- 1/2 cup salted peanut halves
Instructions
- Cook bacon in skillet until crispy. Or, layer on a microwave safe dish with paper towels, and cook for 4-6 minutes on high power, or until well-cooked. Allow to cool, then crumble and set aside in a small bowl.
- Dice onions.
- Place thawed peas in a mixing bowl. Add Greek yogurt, diced onions, bacon, and peanuts to peas, and mix until well combined. Place mixture in refrigerator to chill before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Mmm…yummy, and so easy to make! Mr. Spicy came home from a golf outing, apparently quite hungry, and asked “What’s that stuff in the bowl you’re taking pictures of?”
When I explained to him that it was pea salad, I thought he might wrinkle his nose, but he grabbed a bowl and dug right in, then came back for seconds.
I guess it’s safe to say, this “new” vintage cold green pea salad recipe is a keeper!
Wishing you a healthy and happy Thanksgiving!!!
Let’s Chat!
What are your favorite vintage recipes? What are your most cherished food memories? Does your family have a prized jello salad recipe???
I love hearing from you! And, if you enjoyed the post, please help me spread the word that healthy IS delicious by sharing the post. Cheers & thanks so much for your support!