Arugula Salad with Fava Beans & Beets

Like most people, I look forward to weekends. There’s no pesky alarm clock to turn off and once I get out of bed a leisurely breakfast is in store which always includes crispy bacon, poached eggs and homemade toasted bread. After breakfast I head out to my favorite grocery store, Mana Foods.  Although it’s not anywhere near my home (and some friends think I’m a bit loony for driving so far for groceries)  all I can say is “it’s worth the drive.”  They carry items no one else has on Maui.

You just can’t find fava beans at Safeway, Foodland or even Whole Foods (here on Maui).  I don’t recall which restaurant it was in San Francisco that I first had fava beans,  but I  clearly remember how delicious they were in the salad I ordered.

Fava beans have thick, spongy pods and the ones I bought had just four or five beans in each large pod except for the one above which had six.After cooking the beans briefly,  you’ll need to remove the outer skin which is quite thick (left).  Once you remove the skin you end up with a lovely green bean.

Arugula Salad with Fava Beans & Beets

Serves 2

Ingredients

Dressing

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, crushed

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Salad

2 oz arugula

1/2 cup cooked, shelled fava beans

1/2 cup roasted beets (to save time, buy prepared beets at your local supermarket or health food store salad bar or, alternatively,  you can easily roast or steam them)

shaved Parmigiano Reggiano to taste

Preparation

In a small bowl whisk lemon juice, olive oil, mustard, salt and pepper until well combined.

Remove the fava beans from their pods.  In a medium saucepan bring water to a boil (add salt to the water) and cook fava beans for about 3 minutes. Drain and submerge beans in an ice water bath to stop the cooking. Drain again and place beans on a kitchen towel.

Place arugula and fava beans in a low, wide salad bowl and toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons of dressing.  Scatter beets and shaved Parmigiano Reggiano over the greens and drizzle with more dressing.  Season with more salt and pepper to taste. Serving suggestions: crusty sourdough bread, salumi, cheese, avocado, and pepperoncini.