Bean and Gone

Summer has finally arrived and we suddenly have an abundance of veg that we planted in a panic back at the end of the time before. Since I'm not really a veg eater I am always faced with finding acceptable ways of using them that I'd actually eat.

First up is broad beans (or fava beans as they call them over here because when I call them broad beans I get funny looks...) See below our broad bean plants and pods as evidence. The broad beans are next to our runner bean plants which have grown so tall, I'm convinced they are actually a small colony of Triffids in disguise.

Anyway, I came across Ottolenghi's Avocado and Broad Bean Mash and that seemed just the kind of thing that would solve my problem. This was lovely and easy to make. The main faff is skinning the beans so they will mash, but a sharp knife to lop off the tip and then squeezing the bean out seemed an acceptable solution - and I got the husband to do that, so I call that a decent bit of delegation. Oh, and the lemon peel just gives a bit of flavour to the sauteed spring onions and is a bit of cheffy garnish, just because!

We did it with some BBQ chicken thighs (my fall back BQB marinade for meat and chicken is olive oil, soy, Lee & Perrins, Dijon mustard, ketchup and a bit of tomato puree)

I also did a couscous salad with whatever was to hand - in this case, cucumber, tomatoes, parsley and mint and a bit of red onion, with a lemon and olive oil dressing. It's always such a good stand by.

I had some left over chapati in the freezer from a curry last week, so they did nicely to scoop up the broad bean and avo mash.

All in all it was a lovely summery spread with the smokiness of the chicken going well with the freshness of the mash and couscous. And all washed down with a glass of wine because it would be 

rude not to.


As an aside, referring back to my last post and my recounting of various culinary disasters from the last few weeks, I had a close call last Sunday when I made lasagne. I went to put nutmeg into my bechamel, only to discover I'd lobbed in a load of cumin which was next to the nutmeg in my spice/herb drawer. Needless to say I started the bechamel again - although it might have been an interesting variation, but I decided I wasn't going to risk it.

Anyway, that's it for now. I just saw Melinda's entry that this blog is now a strapping four months old - wow, where did the time go! I hope everyone is well and that the sun is shining wherever you are. :)