Narjissiyeh (Favas with Eggs)

2022 Week 5 Newsletter

Image & Pic from TASTE

When Fava Season comes around we usually share Rand's favorite Favas & Dill recipe (which you can find in the Resource Center) but we figured we'd try something new this time around! This dish can be made with meat or can be kept vegetarian. Garnish with chopped cilantro!

4 tbs olive oil

1 Large onion, finely diced

1 lb (450 g) ground (minced) beef, lamb, or a combination

1 tsp salt

½ tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 cup (125 g) shelled fava (broad) beans, blanched and peeled

6 eggs

Bread, for serving

FOR VEGETARIAN VERSION:

3 tbs olive oil

9 oz (250 g) white cheese (such as halloumi, Akkawi, or Nabulsi), cut into bite-size pieces

1 cup (125 g) shelled fava (broad) beans, blanched and peeled

6 eggs

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bread, for serving

In a medium frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.

Add the onion and cook, stirring, until translucent and starting to brown, 3–5 minutes. Add the meat, salt, coriander, and pepper and cook, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon, until the liquid has evaporated and the meat is nicely browned, 6–8 minutes.

Add the fava (broad) beans, tossing to combine, then cook for about 30 seconds.

With the back of a spoon, make 6 wells in the meat mixture and crack an egg into each one. Using the tip of the spoon, spread the whites around slightly, especially the thicker part surrounding the yolk, to ensure they cook evenly. Cover and cook until the yolks are at your desired level of doneness, about 3 minutes for runny or 5 minutes for fully cooked. Remove from the heat and serve immediately with bread.

TO MAKE THE VEGETARIAN VERSION:

In a medium frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the cheese in a single layer and cook for a couple of minutes on one side until starting to brown (time can vary considerably between brands depending on moisture content, so keep an eye on it), then flip over.

Reduce the heat, to avoid burning the cheese, and add the fava (broad) beans. Crack the eggs evenly over the cheese and fava beans. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Depending on how salty the cheese you are using is, you may not need to add any salt. Increase the heat to medium and with the tip of the spoon, spread the whites around slightly to ensure they cook evenly. You can also pierce the yolks and allow them to spread over the whites to give a nice marbled look and even flavor. Cook until at your desired level of doneness.

Remove from the heat and serve immediately with bread.

Recipe: Kale Quinoa Bites

from 101 Cookbooks

This recipe is very versatile- try adding in chopped broccoli, green onions, your favorite spice mix, etc! 

unsalted butter

2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa, at room temperature

4 large eggs, beaten

scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup crumbled feta

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup very finely chopped kale

1/2 cup shelled fava beans

3/4 cup breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 375F, with a rack in the top third.

Butter mini-muffin tins generously, and line with a strip of parchment paper in each indent, this makes popping the bites out of the pan after either baking or freezing simple.

Combine the quinoa, eggs, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the onion, feta, garlic, kale, and edamame. Stir in most of the breadcrumbs, and let sit for a few minutes so the breadcrumbs can absorb some of the moisture. Fill the prepared muffin tins with the quinoa mixture, pressing the mixture down, and then sprinkling with the remaining breadcrumbs. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until baked through and deeply golden crusted.

Remove the quinoa bites from the pans after a few minutes. Enjoy either hot, or at room temperature

Recipe: Fava Bean Hummus

Recipe & Pic from Elle Republic

If you're new to Favas and aren't sure how to prepare them, this is a great gateway recipe! All the familiar flavor of hummus with a delicious creamy texture. Serve with pita bread or use as a dip for sugar snap peas and carrot sticks!

1 lb fresh fava beans (broad beans in their pods), shelled

1 garlic cloves, minced

½ teaspoon ground cumin

pinch of sumac (optional)

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tsp tahini (well-stirred)

2 tsp cold water

handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil and drop the shelled fava beans in the water. Blanch for 2-3 minutes, until tender. Drain the beans, run them under cold water and transfer them into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Allow the beans to cool for several minutes, then drain and slip off their skins.

TIP: You can easily slip them out of their skin by making a small tear or incision at the top of the bean and squeezing gently. I find the best way to this is by working over a bowl.

Place beans, garlic, cumin, sumac, lemon juice, olive oil, tahini, water and parsley in a food processor (alternatively use an immersion blender). Pulse until smooth and combined. Or if preferred leave the texture slightly chunky. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer to a serving bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a little more sumac.

Serve with toasted pita bread and enjoy!

Recipe: Fava & Sugar Snap Pea Carbonara

From Red Wagon Farm
There are a lot of recipes out there for Risotto with fava and snap peas, but this Carbonara recipe will give you the same rich flavors with much less stove time! 

1/2 pound dried pasta
1 to 2 cups of fresh vegetables (a mix of sugar snap and shelled favas)
1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
pepper and salt as needed

Boil your pasta and while that is cooking saute the vegetables with some butter and the minced garlic in a pan big enough to hold all the vegetables and the pasta. you will be tossing all of it together and you need the heat of the pan to gently set the egg mixture.

When the pasta is cooked drain it, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water. You need to add a little of the cooking water at the end to make the sauce creamy and pull the whole thing together, so reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water!. Turn the burner off, you don’t want to scramble the eggs. The residual heat will set the egg mixture. Add the pasta to the skillet and toss with the vegetables, and garlic and butter. Add half the cheese and, with metal tongs, toss until well coated, about 1 minute. Add the eggs and toss for 1 minute more.

Add the remaining cheese, salt and pepper to taste, and enough of the reserved cooking water to form a creamy sauce that clings to the noodles. Start with about 1/4 cup of the cooking water, don’t dump all of it in, you might not need it all.

Recipe: Rand's No-Fuss Fava Beans

A favorite famous fava recipe from Rand of One Leaf Farm!

"Often people stay away from Fava beans because they've been told that the beans must be shelled out of the pods, and then each bean peeled out of it's skin in order to make it edible, but its just not true! The whole thing is edible, a lot of the bean's flavor is in the pod and peel. These beans can then be served as a side, added to a salad, or mixed with rice or pasta to make a meal!"

-Shell beans from pods and rinse. No need to peel the beans, their outer membrane is where the flavor is.

-In a non-stick pan heat equal parts olive oil and butter on medium-high heat, just enough oil to coat the beans and not fry them.

-Toss loose beans in the oil, occasionally stirring. Add a pinch of salt to the sautéing beans, cover with a lid and turn the heat on low. Let it simmer in it's own juices for 5-10 minutes until beans are tender.

-Transfer the beans to a bowl and toss with minced dill, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper to taste.