Fava Beans with Mint, Lemon & Pistachios

This is the time of year we load up on fava beans. At the market they arrive in puffy bright green pods, stacked high in crates. Preparing them is a labor of love, in part because most of the time you need to first remove the beans from their pods, then slip them from their skins after a quick boil. It’s not as taxing as it sounds – the beans pop quickly from their pods, and peeling them is the kind of kitchen task you can assign to someone while you sit around and chat.

That said, true luxury is walking into a kitchen to discover a bowl of perfectly cooked and shelled favas ready to go. Which is exactly what happened last night (xoxo Wayne!). I grabbed for whatever I had nearby – nuts, cheese, herbs, lemon, dried rose petals –  and it all came together into something so pretty and delicious I couldn’t resist popping off a few photos so I could share the recipe.

You can take this in plenty of directions depending on what you have on hand. Pecorino or crème fraîche work well in place of the Parmesan, and toasted almonds are a good stand-in for pistachios. Basil or dill are great alternatives to the mint.

If you want to make more of a meal out if it, pile everything onto bruschetta with a thick slather of ricotta or goat cheese. And come to think of it, you can cook this pizza dough with a slather of ricotta, goat cheese and/or mozzarella, and use the favas to scatter across the pizza once out of the oven. Also, while it’s not at all the same – you can do a version of this using edamame.

A couple quick fava tips before jumping into the recipe. Fava beans change dramatically throughout the season, and you start to get a feel from them over time. A lot of people love the smallest favas, they sometimes have skins tender enough to leave on. I tend to look for medium-to-large fava beans, but not so large they start to get starchy and hard. There’s a sweet spot and eventually you’ll start to recognize it.

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