I swear, this was totally unplanned.

I was almost done throwing together one of my famous whatever’s-in-my-pantry-plus-a-poached-egg-for-protein lunches before I noticed that every ingredient in my impromptu dish began with the letter P.

Which would not in itself be very remarkable, I suppose, were it not for a somewhat traumatic school event I attended at a very young age: the P Party. Surely inspired by the tenth, rogue Muse–largely unacknowledged in the annals of Greek mythology, Whyme was shunned by Zeus for her populist sympathies and spotty track record, but still breathes life into school plays and classroom activities everywhere–the theme of this primary school gala was Foods Beginning in P.

Peanut butter sandwiches, Pepsi, pancakes. For the seven-year-old gourmet, pancetta or porcini; for the seven-year-old Philadelphian, provolone. All acceptable P foods for a P party.

Of course, my mother didn’t send me to school with any one of these foods.

She sent me to school with prune juice.

Without going into the social ramifications of that decision, I give you a 14-word “recipe” for a surprisingly satisfying spring dish: your choice of Pasta, with Peas, raw Pistachios, shredded Parmesan and a Poached egg. Sweet, nutty, gooey…and not a known laxative.

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