Settling in with Pea Soup

Two Fridays ago, I worked a shift the day before movers came to whisk me away to my new house. Trying to keep dinner simple, I ordered a GF pizza from Pizza Fusion. Not too long after eating a few pieces on the way home in the car, I discovered the pizza was indeed NOT GF. Oooops. (For the record, the box was labeled GF.) I called them to let them know the obvious error. The manager told since they've never made a mistake, the pizza was most definitely GF and not accidentally glutenous. Oh, fellow Celiacs, we know that since I've been GF for 6 years and all the other food I'd eaten was prepared by Yours Truly, I know what caused the symptoms of unattended Celiac Disease.

Enough of that.

I'm all moved into my new place, and have been enjoying the granite counter tops and *gasp* space that I have in the condo. (Anything beats my former tiny urban apartment kitchen.) I just really love it here. The only thing I miss about my old apartment is the natural warmth. The skylights let the sun into the apartment and warm the space, something I like to call "the Greenhouse effect." To help defeat the lack of sunny heat, I made some very simple pea soup last night. It took a whopping 30 minutes. I stole the recipe from Martha. (Martha Stewart.)

I omitted the non-soup part. It would be great with GF grill cheese, though. It might also make a great St. Patrick's Day food. Just sayin'.
You can find the recipe here:
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/green-pea-soup-with-cheddar-scallion-panini?backto=true

Green Pea Soup

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 4 scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
• 3 boxes (10 ounces each) frozen peas
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp white cheddar (6 ounces)
• 8 slices rye sandwich bread
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon butter over medium. Add scallion whites, and cook, stirring, until softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add peas, broth, and 3 cups water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until peas are tender, about 5 minutes; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, toss cheddar with scallion greens. Make 4 sandwiches with cheddar mixture and bread.
3. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon butter over medium-low. Place sandwiches in skillet, and cook until golden, 3 to 4 minutes per side, adding remaining tablespoon butter to skillet to cook second side.
4. Working in batches, puree soup in a blender until smooth (filling blender only halfway to prevent spattering). If necessary, adjust consistency with a little bit of water. Season with salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Slice each panini into four "fingers, and serve with soup.