As soon as fava beans appear at our local farmer’s market each spring, I find myself challenged to see how many times I can make this dish before they disappear for another year. Given their insanely quick harvesting season, I always feel such deep gratitude when I get to enjoy fava beans and the wait for them each year is a reminder that seasonal eating involves a lot of patience AND great reward. If you have kids in the house, put them to work helping you to take beans out of the pods and shells (my son has helped me since he was 2). Here they are paired with two other spring staples in my kitchen – spinach and Meyer lemon.
Prep time: 20 minutes | Cooking time: 10–15 minutes | 4 servings
Ingredients:
~2 cups fresh fava beans (removed from pods, with second skins on - see note)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 medium Meyer lemon (see note)
12 ounces pasta of your choice (any large shape you enjoy)
1/3 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil (see note)
1 clove garlic, halved and lightly smashed
Large pinch of Aleppo pepper flakes (or other mild red pepper - see note)
5 ounces Bloomsdale spinach leaves, washed well (see note)
1 Tablespoon butter (optional)
Salt
Grated parmigiano cheese for serving (optional)
Preparation:
Bring 6 cups of water to a boil over medium high heat. Add the fava beans and baking soda and cook for 2-3 minutes (less time for small beans, more for larger). Drain in a colander and rinse well with cool water. When beans are cool enough, use your fingers to remove the second skins from the beans. Discard skins and set beans aside. (This step can be done in advance, with beans stored in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator until ready to use).
Use a vegetable peeler to remove six strips of zest lengthwise from the Meyer lemon. Gather the strips and use a sharp knife to cut the zest into very fine shreds. Set aside.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
While the pasta water is coming to a boil, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. When hot, add in the smashed garlic clove and red pepper. Cook for about 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add in the fava beans, lemon zest and a few large pinches of salt and cook for about 5 minutes or until beans are starting to soften just slightly (be careful not to overcook, they should hold their shape). Turn off heat.
Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions. Add the spinach to the pot when there is about 30 seconds of cook time remaining.
Drain pasta well and mix it together with the contents of the skillet along with the butter if you’re using it. Add any additional salt as desired. Enjoy immediately, garnished with cheese if you wish.
NOTES
2 cups of fava beans will be roughly 2.5-3 pounds of pods, depending on the size of the beans inside. I always try to choose slightly larger pods/beans if possible as they tend to be easier to shell. Feel free to use frozen fava beans (out of their second skins) if you can’t find fresh or don’t want to spend time shelling the beans. If you have a local Persian market, they may sell the frozen version.
Regular lemon works too, but the unique flavor of Meyer lemon is what makes this dish for me.
Good olive oil tends to be slightly more expensive and should have a rich flavor. You can use any extra virgin olive oil though really!
Feel free to omit the red pepper for less heat, or you can use traditional red pepper flakes (but a smaller pinch)
Bloomsdale spinach has a unique shape/flavor that really holds up in this dish, so use it if you can find it