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Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Have you ever though of adding fresh beans in you every day lunch salads? More than just being inexpensive, beans are also low in fat and calories and a source of high-quality protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates.
To illustrate the subject here is a small spring salad recipe with crisp and colorful vegetables which combines fava beans and carrots along with fresh cheddar. So it’s a salad where flavors are well balanced… but still very easy to do.
It’s better to slightly undercook the fava beans, so they are barely tender inside and their skins remain intact. It is the key to obtain a good texture for the salad. It is also a good thing to dress beans warm so they absorb the flavors around them. Note that this can apply to any kind of beans.
Ingredients list for Carrots and Fava Beans Salad
Serves: 3/4 :
- 3 lbs (1,5kg) fresh fava bean
- 5 ounces (140g) baby carrots
- 3 1/2 (100g) Cheddar cheese
- 1 hard boiled egg
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons walnut oil
- 1 teaspoon sweet mustard
- Salt
- Pepper
- Basil
cooking instructions
1. Shell fava beans from their pod.
2. Cook the egg in boiling water for 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, blanch fava beans for 3 minutes in boiling water. Drain and refresh under cold water then remove the outer membrane (press with two fingers, be careful not to crush the bean). Book.
4. Drain and cool the egg and mash it coarsely with a fork.
5. Peel and grate the carrots.
6. Cut the cheese into small cubes.
7. In a bowl, combine vinegar, oil, mustard, salt and pepper. Add the beans, carrots, cheese and egg.
8. Mix and sprinkle with basil leaves.
Tips:
- To make this dish more substantial, serve it with thick toasted bread slices.
- You can keep some bean salad for the next day: you will like it a lot since the fava beans have marinated overnight.
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
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