Recipe: Fava Bean Salad

I love fava beans, the soft fuzzy pods and the bright green beans, more firm than limas, not as sweet as peas. I threw them into a quick salad one night and tarted it up with a light vinaigrette, a few slivers of raw shallot, and some Parmesan shavings. Easy as pie. Er, salad.

Fava Bean Salad
Yield: How many you got?

I was in a salad frenzy so all measurements are off. Really, other than the vinaigrette, it's all to your own taste anyway. If you don't have walnuts, use pecans. Or hazelnuts. Or toasted pine nuts, I suppose, in a pinch.

butter lettuce, torn into bits
fava beans, removed from the shell, blanched and peeled
shallot, sliced thinly
vinaigrette (3 parts olive oil to 1 part vinegar -- white wine, red wine, champagne, whatever), whisked into an emulsion
walnuts, roughly chopped
Parmesan cheese, sliced into slivers

There's not much to it. If you don't know how to deal with fava beans, read the How to Prepare and Cook section on this page.
Then just throw the lettuce, favas and shallot in a bowl in proportions that suit you -- make it nutty if you like a lot of crunch, or mostly favas with just a thought of lettuce. Toss with the vinaigrette, then top with nuts and cheese. Yum.