Fava Beans Herbs Bacon And Its Fat Recipes

HERBED FAVA BEANS WITH PASTA

Steps:

• Fill a large bowl with ice water. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fava beans and cook 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to the ice water; let cool about 5 minutes (keep the pot of water boiling). Drain the beans, then peel off their skins (they should slip right off). Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook as the label directs. Reserve about 1 1/2 cups cooking water, then drain the pasta.
• Heat the olive oil, garlic, mint sprigs, parsley sprigs and all but 2 tablespoons of the scallions in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until the scallions are soft, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the favas and 1 cup of the reserved cooking water. Bring to a simmer and cook until the favas are tender and the liquid is slightly reduced, 8 to 10 minutes; discard the garlic and herb sprigs.
• Add the pasta to the skillet and cook, tossing until it absorbs some of the sauce, about 3 minutes. Stir in the butter, chopped mint and parsley, reserved scallions, and salt and pepper to taste. Add more cooking water to loosen, if needed. Serve warm or at room temperature.
• Tip: If you can't find fresh fava beans, use frozen shelled and skinned ones and blanch as directed.

CREAMED FAVA BEANS AND BACON

Steps:

• Shell the beans from the pods.
• Briefly blanch the beans, then shock with ice water and remove their skins - excepting those that are tiny (discard the tiny ones).
• Cut the bacon into 1/2-inch pieces, then parboil for 10 seconds to remove excess salt, and drain.
• In a heavy saucepan (one with a cover) over low heat, melt the butter and cook the bacon for two to three minutes (bacon should remain limp).
• Add the peeled fava beans, savory, water, and salt to taste.
• Cover tightly, increase temperature to high, and cook over high heat for a few seconds (for gas burners, that would be about 5-10 seconds, for standard electric coil burner that would be about 15-20), then decrease heat to low and cook, shaking pan occasionally, until tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.
• Remove pan from heat and allow to cool for 2 minutes.
• In a bowl whisk together well the cream, egg yolks, and pepper (to taste), then stir the mixture gently into the fava beans.
• Return the beans to low heat, stirring until the sauce just begins to thicken (coating the spoon thinly) - do not allow to boil.
• Transfer beans to serving dish, sprinkle with the lemon juice and chopped parsley, and serve.

FAVA BEAN AND BACON RISOTTO

Steps:

• Cook the fava beans in a saucepan of lightly salted boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Drain and plunge into ice-cold water to cool. Peel away and discard the outer shells and set the beans aside.
• Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the onion and bacon and cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Add the rice and beans and continue to cook, stirring for 1-2 minutes.
• Add enough hot stock to cover the rice and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until most of the stock has been absorbed. Continue adding the stock in this way until it is almost completely absorbed and rice is tender.
• Remove from the heat, stir in the grated Parmesan, and season to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with Parmesan shavings.

FAVA-BEAN PUDDING WITH SHIITAKES, BACON AND WILTED ARUGULA

Steps:

• To make the pudding, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the beans and blanch until soft, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Slip their skins off. Set aside 1/2 cup of beans and put the rest into a blender. Add the eggs, yogurt cheese, scallions, salt and pepper and blend until smooth.
• Spray 4 6-ounce ramekins with the olive oil and divide the bean mixture among them. Place them in a steamer basket over barely simmering water. Cover and steam until puddings are set, about 25 minutes.
• To make the garnish, cook the bacon in a medium-size nonstick skillet until browned. Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve. Pour off the fat. Add the shiitakes to the skillet and cook over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the arugula and cook until almost wilted. Remove from the heat and stir in the bacon, salt and pepper.
• To serve, run the tip of a small knife around the inside edge of the ramekins to loosen the puddings. Invert each onto the center of a plate and surround with the shiitake mixture. Sprinkle with the reserved fava beans and serve immediately.

FAVA BEANS, HERBS, BACON, AND ITS FAT

Steps:

• Cook the fava beans in a deep pan of lightly salted boiling water. They should be tender in four or five minutes. Cool them under running water, popping the bright green beans from their pale skins with your finger and thumb and dropping them into a bowl as you go. If the beans are really small and young, I sometimes leave the skins on.
• Finely slice the green onions and drop them into a bowl. Chop enough dill to give you a couple of heaping tablespoons. Pull a loose handful of mint leaves from their stems and add them to the onions with the dill and white wine vinegar. Crumble in a little salt and some coarse black pepper, then stir in enough olive oil to make a slushy dressing. I find 5 to 6 tablespoons (80 to 90ml) are enough.
• Lay the bacon in a nonstick frying pan with the merest drop of olive oil and let it fry until the fat is golden and verging on the crisp. Fold the skinned beans into the herb dressing and divide between two plates. Put a couple of slices of bacon on each, tipping any hot fat in the pan over the beans.