Last time we were in Brooklyn, I loaded up both of our carryons with things I miss from the peerless Sahadi's, like cardamom tea and harissa paste and pistachio oil. (Actually, the pistachio oil was a problem as it was over the size limit for said carryons. Luckily, we were in NY to visit a baby with a very smart mama, who filled two of his bottles---under the volume limit---with my precious oil and sent me on my way.)
I also got a nice big container of dried, shelled fava beans. They may not be as tender as the farmer's-market-fresh batch that went into this soup, but the nutty flavor and velvet texture when pureed are all there. I love the flavor of this puree and was tempted to eat it with a spoon (or on little toasts, perhaps?). Instead, it went over some store-bought "wild mushroom agnolotti" with ribbons of barely-steamed asparagus.
2 cups dried, shelled favas
juice of 1 lemon (maybe 2 if yours are small and/or store bought - mine was the last of my Arizona trove)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 package finely chopped dried cherries
One bunch fresh parsley, stemmed and chopped
1/2 cup grated nutty white cheese
splash of white balsamic vinegar
Salt
Quick-soak the favas beans (cover in water, about 2-3 inches above beans, bring to boil, boil for one minute, turn off heat, let sit for one hour).
While they soak, make a vinaigrette of olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar and salt. Taste and adjust to your liking; measurements approximate. You can always add more of any of these things to the puree once it's made. (Chop the parsley and cherries and grate the cheese, too.)
When favas are ready, mash them with vinaigrette using a potato masher, to whatever consistency you like (I think chunky is nice), mix the other ingredients in and mash a bit more, adjust flavors, and serve - hot or cold depending how you use it.
Ed. 11/22/15: I made this again for a party at my house (served as a cold dip), and have a few notes. First, I think the better quantity of favas is more like 2 cups AFTER soaking. Second, this time around I didn't have as much soaking time and the beans weren't quite as soft, so I pureed 2/3 of them with the vinaigrette in the blender (food processor would be even better if you have one) and mashed the rest with a fork. Third, I needed a lot more olive oil than in the above, partly because of the beans being less soft. And fourth, I made it without any cheese for some vegan guests and it was still delightful!
I also got a nice big container of dried, shelled fava beans. They may not be as tender as the farmer's-market-fresh batch that went into this soup, but the nutty flavor and velvet texture when pureed are all there. I love the flavor of this puree and was tempted to eat it with a spoon (or on little toasts, perhaps?). Instead, it went over some store-bought "wild mushroom agnolotti" with ribbons of barely-steamed asparagus.
2 cups dried, shelled favas
juice of 1 lemon (maybe 2 if yours are small and/or store bought - mine was the last of my Arizona trove)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 package finely chopped dried cherries
One bunch fresh parsley, stemmed and chopped
1/2 cup grated nutty white cheese
splash of white balsamic vinegar
Salt
Quick-soak the favas beans (cover in water, about 2-3 inches above beans, bring to boil, boil for one minute, turn off heat, let sit for one hour).
While they soak, make a vinaigrette of olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar and salt. Taste and adjust to your liking; measurements approximate. You can always add more of any of these things to the puree once it's made. (Chop the parsley and cherries and grate the cheese, too.)
When favas are ready, mash them with vinaigrette using a potato masher, to whatever consistency you like (I think chunky is nice), mix the other ingredients in and mash a bit more, adjust flavors, and serve - hot or cold depending how you use it.
Ed. 11/22/15: I made this again for a party at my house (served as a cold dip), and have a few notes. First, I think the better quantity of favas is more like 2 cups AFTER soaking. Second, this time around I didn't have as much soaking time and the beans weren't quite as soft, so I pureed 2/3 of them with the vinaigrette in the blender (food processor would be even better if you have one) and mashed the rest with a fork. Third, I needed a lot more olive oil than in the above, partly because of the beans being less soft. And fourth, I made it without any cheese for some vegan guests and it was still delightful!
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