Bean and gone

I have a great recipe for broad (fava) beans (or rather Rose Elliot does), which is why I decided to grow them this summer. When buying seeds I’m always tempted by the packets with those little veggie cartoons on the front: if kids can grow them, surely I can! I had moderate success with the broad beans. The beans I picked were of a decent size, color, and shape, and tasted good; however, some pods were soft and misshapen and their beans weren’t good. I’m not too sure if the beans were blighted by a disease or if I just didn’t give them enough room in which to grow (I have a modest sized veg patch in my back garden). I also think they may have suffered from a lack of water when I was away for a week or so.

Anyway, they take a good photo!

Rose Elliot's Penne with Minto Pesto, Peans, and Beans (or a variation thereon):

Boil up a pan of penne. While the pasta is boiling, finely chop some mint leaves, crush a garlic clove and stir these into some olive oil. When the pasta is almost ready, add peas and broad beans. Once the pasta’s cooked, drain it (taking care not to lose any of the small peas during the process!), then stir in the mint pesto and season. Serve with parmesan cheese.

Note: If the broad beans are particularly tough, you may need to boil them first, remove their skins, and then add them to the pasta once it's cooked. Frozen peas and beans work just as well, and if you can’t get broad beans, use lima beans.