Fava Beans, Broad Beans, from the market

 

This spaghetti with fava beans recipe comes from The Marche (Le Marche) region of Italy, where we ate it in a restaurant called Giardino in the small town of San Lorenzo in Campo, which is primarily known today for its Benedictine gothic abby.

 

Le Marche is a beautiful hilly region of central Italy that is often missed by tourists.  Urbino. Pesaro, and  Ancona are the most well known cities and represent the wonderful diverisity of food, landscape, and culture that makes up some of the best Italy has to offer.

<em>Photo by Timotheus Wolf</em>

 

Fresh fava beans, also known as broad beans, are in season in Spring. They are delicious raw, dipped in sea salt, or cooked.

 

Normally Giuliano does not remove the skin of the fava beans, but here it is important because the fava beans need to be very tender since this is a sauce.

 

Only the green tops of the fennel are used, so you can save the bulb and serve it thinly sliced in a salad.

 

 

 

fava beans

 

page1image4140518384

SPAGHETTI WITH FAVA BEANS RECIPE

(From How to Cook Italian by Giuliano Hazan

page1image4141071904

Serves 6 people

 

Ingredients:

1 1/4 pounds fresh fava beans in the pod 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion
2 ounces pancetta sliced 1/4″ thick

1 pound ripe tomatoes
2 tablespoons green feathery fennel tops Salt
1 pound spaghetti

4 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino Romano

 

Directions:

1. Remove the fava beans from the pods and peel the skin from each bean.

2. Peel and finely chop the onion. Put the olive oil and onion in a 12- inch skillet over medium high heat. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion turns a rich golden color, about 5 minutes.

3. While the onion is sautéing, unravel the pancetta and cut into thin strips. Peel the tomatoes and coarsely chop them. Chop the fennel tops.

4. When the onion is ready, add the pancetta and cook until it begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, fava beans, and fennel tops. Season with salt, lower the heat to medium low, and cook until the fava beans are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. If all the liquid in the pan evaporates before the fava beans are tender, add some water.

 

Cooking the Pasta:

 Add about 2 tablespoons salt to the boiling water, put in the spaghetti, and stir until all the strands are submerged.

Cook until al dente, then drain well, toss the pasta with the sauce and pecorino cheese.

 

Serve at once.