Broadies harvested this evening.

[cornykev]

Harvested broadies on the lottie this evening, I had not even noticed there was any ready as I wasn't watering them for a few days, I couldn't believe :o they were ready. Any ideas on the best way to cook them.  :P ;D ;D ;D

[cornykev]

[flossie]

Amazing - what sort? When did you sow them?  I love a few in a risotto :P

[mc55]

ooo, you lucky thing - mine are only about one and half inches long - my neighbour spotted them, I hadn't even realised they were there.

He spotted my baby beetroot had germinated too - must walk round with my eyes closed.

[knbsallotment]

I also have broad beans ready to harvest. YUMMY! I love them boiled gently, like most other veg, and served as part of a yummy roast dinner!

[Trevor_D]

I kidnapped one this morning and ate the beans raw!  :) :) :) :)

Best way to cook them is to put them in a pan with the lid on, a tiny amount of water and a bit of butter (and a threat of salt & pepper). Just steam them for a few minutes.

[cornykev]

My mate on the lottie gave me a bag last year and these were left over so I don't know what type they were and I can't remember when I planted them, I only kept a diary from January so I would say about November.  ;D ;D ;D

[pigeonseed]

I'd always grown runners, and tried some overwintering broadbeans this year. because you can eat runner bean pods whole if you pick them young, i picked some young pods of broadbeans yesterday.

yuck the pods are all furry.

must be more patient with future pods...

[cornykev]

I will be having my broadies steamed with my dinner tonight.  ;D ;D ;D

[sweet-pea]

I have a question about broadies.  Mine ('The Sutton') are just flowering at the moment.  I've read that you should remove the tops when they are flowering to reduce the risk of blackfly. I can't remember how much my book said to remove but it seemed a lot, and I think if I removed that amount (sure it was top 6 inches!) I'd remove all the flowers.  I know the Sutton is a dwarf variety so maybe that's why it seems a lot to remove.

What do other people do? 

[cornykev]

When I see that the blackfly are on the tops I just snap the top off, taking all the flys with it, this is what I was advised at our lottie.  ;D ;D ;D

[Robert_Brenchley]

I never break the tops off, I just let the blue tits deal with the aphids.

[Trevor_D]

Just the very top "flower" bit. You can eat them (check for blackfly first!); the texture of spinach & the taste of BBs. (There are better culinary experiences....)

In an ideal world, of course, you take off the tops the day before the blackfly arrives! Look for ant activity - a real give-away!

[Biscombe]

We eat ours Spanish style fried in garlic, diced onions and olive oil (all our own) but here's some recipies to be gettin on with...............

Broad Beans with Goat's Cheese and Herby Dressing

Cook some shelled and briefly blanched broad beans. Make a simple dressing with equal amounts of lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil, then mix in some roughly chopped fresh basil and mint. Stir this into the  Serve with a handful of rocket with crumbled soft goat's cheese and crusty bread.

Tagliatelle with Rocket and Broad Beans

Cook 400g tagliatelle according to packet instructions.
Meanwhile, cook 360g fresh podded broad beans in boiling water for 3-4 minutes, drain and peel any large ones. Drain the pasta and return to the hot pan, then add 100g rocket and 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. Stir, cover and let the rocket wilt for a minute. Add the broad beans, lots of black pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice, stir again and serve at once with grated Parmesan.

BROAD BEAN AND FLAMED PEPPER SALAD


INGREDIENTS:
1 RED PEPPER
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340g (12oz) SHELLED BROAD BEANS
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115g (4oz) MIXED BEAN SPROUTS
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FOR THE DRESSING:
2TBSP WINE VINEGAR
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4TBSP COLD-PRESSED SUNFLOWER OIL
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1-2 TSP SESAME OIL
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HANDFUL OF CHOPPED FRESH MINT
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SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE
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2TBSP TOASTED SESAME SEEDS    

METHOD:
1. Halve and deseed the pepper and barbecue skin side down until it starts to blacken. Put in a strong plastic bag until cool enough to handle. Remove the skin and seeds and reserve any juices to use in the dressing.

2. Make the dressing by whisking the vinegar and oil together. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and stir in the chopped mint.

3. Cook the broad beans in boiling water and drain. If the bean skins are tough, pop out the dark green tender centres and discard the skins.

4. Slice the grilled and skinned pepper and mix together with the broad beans and beansprouts. Pour the dressing over the vegetables while they are still warm. Scatter with toasted sesame seeds before serving.

Broad Bean Avgolemono with lovage

SERVES 4-6
450 g/1 Ib shelled fresh broad beans or 225 g/8 oz dried broad beans (fava), soaked overnight and drained
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk of lovage (or fennel or celery), finely shredded
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Juice of 1?2  lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 litre/1 3?4 pints vegetable stock or water
1 glass dry white wine
Salt and pepper

To finish
2 small eggs
juice of 1?2  lemon
4 spring onions, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
lemon quarters

   


1.Pick over the broad beans. If they are elderly or dried out, nick out the little black ‘key’ and skin them. If they are young and tender include some of the young pods (de-stringed and chopped) - these have a lovely asparagus-like flavour.

2.Put all the soup ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes (or at least 1 hour if using dried beans), until the beans are quite tender.

3.To finish, remove the soup from the heat and whisk the eggs with the lemon juice. Whisk a ladleful of the hot soup into the egg-and-lemon mixture and stir this back into the soup. Don't reboil the soup or it will curdle. Serve immediately, sprinkled with chopped spring onions and parsley, accompanied by quartered lemons and plenty of bread to mop up the broth.

Broad Bean Patties

Ingredients

*   2 cups dried broad beans
*   1 cup chopped spring onions
*   1?4 cup chopped parsley
*   2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
*   3 garlic cloves
*   11?2 tspn salt
*   freshly ground black pepper
*   1?4 tspn hot chili pepper
*   1?4 tspn bicarbonate of soda
*   sesame seeds, optional
*   oil for deep frying


Preparation & Cooking Instructions

1.   Place beans in a bowl and cover well with cold water. Leave to soak for 2 days, changing water 2 or 3 times.
2.   Drain beans and remove skins by pressing each firmly with fingers. Bean should pop out, otherwise tear skin with fingernail then squeeze.
3.   Pass cleaned beans through food grinder using fine screen.
4.   Combine with spring onion, parsley, coriander, garlic, salt, peppers and soda.
5.   Pass through grinder twice more, then knead to a paste. Let mixture rest for 30 minutes.
6.   With wet hands shape about a tablespoon of mixture at a time into thick patties about 4 cm (11?2") in diameter.
7.   Dip each side in sesame seeds if desired.
8.   Place on a tray and leave at room temperature for 20 minutes.
9.   Heat oil to 180°C (350°F) or until a cube of bread turns golden in 1 minute.
10.   Fry patties a few at a time until deep golden brown, turning to brown evenly. Each lot should take 5 minutes to cook.
11.   Drain on paper towels.
12.   Serve hot with flat bread such as Khoubiz, Salata Tahina and assorted salad vegetables, such as tomato, cucumber, sweet peppers and lettuce.
Food processor method: Combine prepared ingredients and process in 2 lots using steel blade. Mix well to evenly distribute flavors, rest mixture 30 minute then fry as directed above.

Pan-Fried Broad Beans

This warming vegetable dish would make an excellent accompaniment, and add variety, to any meal.

Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 15 minutes
Calories per serving: 145

For 4 Servings
450g (1 lb) broad beans
2 tbsp olive oil
100g (4 oz) onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
450g (1 lb) tomatoes, peeled and quartered
salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation
Bring 1 litre (1.75 pt) of water to the boil. Add the broad beans, cook for 8 - 10 minutes or until nearly tender. Drain.
Heat the oil in a large heavy-bsed frying pan. Fry the onions and garlic until tender. Add the beans and tomatoes. Fry on a medium high heat for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
Season and serve.

Good served with:
A potato bake.
Watchpoints:
Make sure the broad beans are more under than over cooked or they will break up and go mushy when stir fried.

SWEET AND SOUR BROAD BEANS
1lb/450g broad beans shelled
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SAUCE:
1tbsp/15ml soy sauce
3tbsp/45ml pineapple juice
2tbsp/30ml tomato purée
2tbsp/30ml white wine vinegar
2tbsp/30ml vegetable oil
2tbsp/30ml brown sugar
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2 cloves garlic. crushed
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1tsp/5ml fresh grated ginger
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1 bunch spring onions
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1 red pepper
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1tbsp/15ml corn flour
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1tbsp/15ml water    1. Cook the broad beans in boiling salted water until tender.
Drain.

2. Place all the sweet and sour ingredients in a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar has disolved.

3. Heat the oil in a large pan.
Add the garlic, ginger, spring onions and red pepper and sauté for 2 minutes.

4. Add the sweet and sour sauce to the pan and bring to the boil.
Make a paste with the cornflour and water and stir into the saucepan to thicken the sauce.

5. Add the broad beans and serve.

[sarah]

mmmmm yummy yummy.  my broadies are almost ready too. thanks for those great recipes biscombe.

[mc55]

excellent recipes, thanks,shall be trying some of them.

[sweet-pea]

Just the very top "flower" bit. You can eat them (check for blackfly first!); the texture of spinach & the taste of BBs. (There are better culinary experiences....)

In an ideal world, of course, you take off the tops the day before the blackfly arrives! Look for ant activity - a real give-away!

Thanks all.  Well I have ant activity, although I can't see much aphid activity yet.  Might try a little experiment, snap the tops off some and not off others and see what difference it makes

[pigeonseed]

I have a LOT of aphid activity - I only found out the 'pinch out the tops to prevent blackfly' tip today - too late. the stems and edges of the pods are all black with them.

I squished as many as i could without damaging the flowers and stuff and rinsed with water. actually the blackfly don't seem to be bothering the plant. But I suppose it would be doing even better without them.