Today a recipe for a main course but also an appetizer: pea flans with a melting center, egg-free.
Perfect as a main course, served with grilled vegetables or gratinated fennel and a delicious milk roll, these legume flans are ideal for a light, complete lunch that contributes tasty variety to a balanced diet. We eat legumes at home at least three times a week and sometimes I don’t feel like making the usual bean meatballs or the chickpea burgers, so I put peas in the food processor and then add a few other ingredients to get a delicious dinner in no time that everyone always likes.
These pea flans, if you remove the little piece of cheese in the center, are perfect for those who have chosen a vegetarian or vegan diet because they contain no eggs or Parmesan. I also used rice flour in the batter, so they are gluten-free.
To make them I used a muffin tin to create fun single portions; in this way our pea flans with a melting center become a tasty appetizer. Delicious and flavorful… try them served with a fresh tomato sauce!!!
Let’s see step by step how to make this recipe.
To receive the daily recipe for free
You might also be interested in
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 6–8 flans
- Cooking methods: Oven, Boiling
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for the pea flans
- 3 cups peas (cooked (about 17.6 oz / 500 g))
- 2 fresh scallions (small)
- 1/4 cup rice flour (about 30 g)
- 1 pinch baking soda
- 1 pinch black pepper
- to taste salt
- 1 teaspoon curry (or another spice)
- as needed olive oil (for greasing molds)
- as needed breadcrumbs (for greasing molds)
- 8 cubes scamorza cheese
Tools
- 1 Food processor
- 1 Scale
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Muffin pan
Let’s prepare the pea flans with melting center together
To prepare the flans we need boiled peas: you can use canned peas, frozen peas (boil them first) or dried peas (soak and then boil). Once the peas are cooked, drain them well and place them in the food processor bowl. Add two cleaned scallions (remove outer leaves) cut into large pieces, a pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper and one teaspoon of curry. Turn on the machine and blend until there are no more pea pieces.
Pour the blended peas into a bowl and add the rice flour and a pinch of baking soda, then mix well with a spatula. Taste and, if bland, adjust the salt.
Take the muffin tin and lightly grease each cavity, making sure to cover all areas. Then add a scant tablespoon of breadcrumbs, pressing so they stick all around to prevent the little flans from sticking.
Place a spoonful of batter into a cavity of the tin, filling to halfway. Insert a cube of cheese, then top with a little more pea batter. Continue until all cavities are filled.
Bake in a preheated oven at 374°F for 15–20 minutes, then remove and serve piping hot, accompanied by a fresh tomato sauce. To unmold the flans, run a knife between the tin and the flan to detach it from the walls, then invert. To prepare the tomato sauce, put one tomato cut into pieces with 1/4 of an onion, salt, pepper and oil, and blend everything with an immersion blender.
Una Riccia recommends
You can prepare the pea flans in advance and bake them when needed. Once cooked they keep well in the fridge in an airtight container for two to three days.
FAQ (Questions & Answers)
Which spices can be used to flavor the pea flans?
I used curry, but you can get creative and use simple black pepper, chili flakes, paprika or a vegetable seasoning blend.
What type of cheese can I put in the heart of the pea flans?
I used scamorza, but you can use galbanino, provola, fontina or even gorgonzola.
