Pea and Bacon salad-

 

I hate peas. No seriously, I really do....ok, well I used to hate peas. I had taken a deliberate vow against peas since the first grade when I tried them for the first time. There they were on my lunch tray, green little balls of skin filled with a mushy substance that exploded mid bite. Ok so I'm not painting a lovely picture of peas, but I had never again tried them. To give you some background, I'm half korean, my parents were divorced, so my mother raised me on a primarily Korean diet. And yes, while she did sneak them into fried rice and various soups, I had never again eaten them as a side until last winter. I was at a christmas party, and I had decided to get a little bit of everything because it all looked really delicious. There it was, the bane of my existance...peas, or more correctly pea salad. I picked up a small spoonful, and I headed off to my seat next to my husband. I took a bite and suddenly that spoonful had changed my life! Ok, to put in not quite so dramatic words, it was good. Not just good, but amazing. It had bacon and cheese in it, it was crunchy. It was really just delicious. I headed home that evening determined to figure out how I would recreate this delicious pea salad and out of it I came up with this. It costs about 4 dollars to make when using ingredients from aldis and its great for parties! I guess I should also add, (Aldi's does not pay me to advertise for them, I just think they're underestimated!)

Things you'll need from Aldi's

• 1 14 oz bag of frozen peas
• 1 medium sweet onion diced
• 1-2 heaping tablespoons of Mayo (per taste)
• 1 1/2 cup of sharp cheddar cheese
• 6-8 strips of thick cut applewood smoked bacon cut up
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
• Large mixing bowl

Directions:

• Go ahead and start cooking your chopped bacon on medium high heat. Pay attention, and stir frequently. Cook it until its just crisp- not too crispy. I reserve my bacon grease as you'll find in future recipes, but thats up to you :)

• While the bacon is cooking, stir your frozen peas and sweet onion, cheddar cheese, salt and pepper, lemon juice,  and mayo together. I let my peas thaw as I'm cooking. I find that it keeps the salad cold, and the peas are deliciously crisp once thawed.

• When bacon is finished cooking, drain grease and let cool. Once cool add into salad and stir, and its done!