The fiery COUPLE: VALENTINE’S DAY PAIRINGS

Do you also smell love in the air? It’s February, the month of passion! A deep connection that can also flourish at the table, thanks to the right match between ingredients. Some foods, when paired well, bring out the best they have to offer, from both a flavour and nutritional point of view.

Which matches are we talking about? There are great classics, like jam and butter, pears and gorgonzola, Italian prosciutto and melon, chili pepper and chocolate. Then, the less common ones, the ones that are overlooked but are just as valid for our meals.

If you’ve ever looked at a couple and thought “oh no, not those two together!”, you should never judge food matches in the same way. Read the following article and you will agree with us.

Pulses and vegetables: magic attraction

We know that pulses are rich in proteins and vegetables are full of essential fibres, vitamins and minerals. While pulses are good for everyone, and essential for those who do not eat meat or fish, vegetables should always be consumed in high quantities and at every meal. It therefore makes sense that they are so attracted to each other… their liaison makes for a complete meal that is perfect in every way. A perfect union, not only when it comes to their nutritional properties, but decidedly delicious too: with their many colours and flavours, if paired in the right way, vegetables enhance the already sweet and velvety flavour of lentils, chickpeas, peas, fava beans and beans.¹

The cream of broccoli rabe and lentils is an unusual but tasty recipe that pairs pulses and vegetables and is perfect for Valentine’s Day: the dish is mainly composed of delicate and delicious pulses and onions cooked with cherry tomatoes and pork belly. The boiled and blended broccoli rabe makes a cream that envelops the lentils in a green embrace. The cauliflower and chickpeas soup with its contrasting flavours is just as enticing: a comfy dish that requires slow cooking and a generous dose of patience, it will win you over with its intense cauliflower flavour and enveloping richness of the chickpeas.

Grains and pulses: an indissoluble union

Pulses are full of proteins, but they lack some essential amino acids compared to animal proteins… this is where grains come to our rescue. The pairing of pulses and grains meets our nutritional needs perfectly: the amino acids that pulses lack are present in grains thus ensuring proteins of high biological value. Sometimes, when opposites attract they form great couples. This is the case with grains and pulses, they complete each other and turn their differences into strengths. Their different characteristics make them two foods that are perfect when paired together, they complement each other when it comes to flavour and they are balanced from a nutritional point of view.²

Looking for ideas for original pairings based on grains and pulses? For a tasty and delicious aperitif, try a fun millet, fava beans and pecorino pie or quinoa and lentil, or spelt and beans tarts: they are tasty and crunchy, lending themselves to every occasion and also perfect as an entrée for your romantic dinner. An excellent mix to regenerate the body, easy to make and impossible to get wrong, pulses and grains also give life to basic but never mundane first courses such as Pasta and Chickpeas and Rice and Peas. In summer they are amazing in salads, but in winter, they are a must-have ingredient in hot soups, as a healthy and balanced dish to be enriched with seasonal vegetables, tomato purée and aromatic herbs.

Are you looking for a main dish for Valentine’s Day that is original but not too hard to make? One of our unusual but well-matched pairings is our delicate dish Grains and peas with zucchini cream and salmon: a “daring” choice that is promising for our health and our palate.

We at Pedon believe in variety and creativity at the table. We also think that “union is strength”, and while we love traditional pairings we are also open to unusual and “unpredictable” combinations, especially when pairing two or more foods adds value both from a flavour point of view as well as from a nutritional one. Our Mixes (including Lentils and Ancient Grains and Chickpeas and whole-grain Spelt) and Mixes with Vegetables (Quinoa and Peas with Corn and Carrots and Spelt and Beans with peas and carrots) from the I Pronti range are among our most popular matches, where grains, pulses and vegetables come together in an explosion of taste, colours, perfumes and natural properties: steamed and ready to be served. Some perfect pairings are also Grains and Pulses from the Broths and Soups range (such as Pulses and Millet and Grains and Lentils), Mixes for Salads (such as Quinoa, Lentils and sesame seeds), Alternative Risottos (including Millet and Lentils with flaxseeds) and the Gluten-Free range
I Salvaminuti: ready in 10 minutes for a different quick and delicious meal every day.
Try them all… it will be love at first bite!

Bibliography

1. “5 abbinamenti in cucina con legumi e verdure” (5 ways to pair pulses and vegetables), Unadonna.it women’s magazine, Source unadonna.it
2. “Abbinamento legumi e cereali: tutti i benefici” (Pairing pulses and grains: all the benefits), Olio a filo magazine, Source olioafilo.it