My toddler loves peas. He is the inspiration behind the name of my blog. It always puts a smile on my face when he finishes his peas and signs ‘more’ (as fast as he can for extra emphasis) while saying please, please, please. Peas are my go to veggie when I feel like he hasn’t been eating as well as I would like him to be eating.

Just one serving of peas provides an excellent source of Vitamin A and K. It is also a good source of Vitamin C, fiber, folate, and thiamin. There are 4 grams of protein in just 1/2 cup. That is good news if your kids are picky about meats like my child.

Here is a fun fact about peas. Thomas Jefferson loved English Peas. He grew 15 different varieties of English Peas. He even took part in an annual contest to see who would be the first to bring “peas to the table.” Although he didn’t ever win. One time he should have won the contest, but he threw the contest so he didn’t disappoint the reigning champion! Here is his quote, “No, say nothing about it, it will be more agreeable to our friend if he thinks he never fails.” Talk about a good friend. My parents instilled some competitive spirit in all of us kids growing up, so this one is hard for me to swallow. I would have been bragging to everyone and displaying signs about my peas growing first! But I do have to admit, it makes me like Thomas Jefferson even more!

Peas are a great veggie for you to introduce to the whole family, if you haven’t already. Our favorite way to eat them is to simply buy the frozen steamer bags. I don’t add anything to them, but if you have to add some pepper and/ or butter for your family to eat them it is okay. Peas are easy to cook with because you can throw them in almost any dish you cook for your family. Last night we cooked shrimp and orzo and threw some peas in for my son. It was delicious! You can even throw them in mac and cheese and have mac and peas!

So let me know, does your family love peas? What is your favorite dish that you put peas in?