Salty Snack - Lupini Beans

I am always buying something I have never tried before.  I had seen lupini beans in jars but when I found them dried at my favourite Italian grocer, I thought I should give them a try.



Researching recipes was interesting.  The lupini bean, although Italian, it is popular in the Mediterranean countries and is usually eaten as a salty (bar) snack.  The only hitch to cooking this bean is the length of time it takes to produce an edible product.  Apparently it is very bitter and can be toxic if the bitterness is not removed.



So it is a good news, bad news story.  The bad news is that it is the ultimate slow food.  It can take up to two weeks to soak out the bitterness before they can be enjoyed.  The good news is that they are second only to soybeans for protein content in a lentil or bean.  They are a healthy, high fibre, high protein food.



They are called tremoços in Portugal, altramucaes in Spain, tarmose in Egypt and lupins in Australia.  But in all these different regions, they are usually eaten as a salty snack.  They remind me of a fava bean.  There is a tougher outer skin that must be discarded so you can eat the tender insides.  There is a little hole on one edge of the bean that allows you access to remove the outer skin.



After the bean is sufficiently cooked and soaked, it is stored in a brine in the refrigerator and can keep nicely for more than 2 weeks.  To serve as a snack, drain the desired amount of beans, drizzle with olive oil and top with freshly ground black pepper, garlic or herbs.



My beans did require the requisite two weeks of soaking to remove the bitterness.  Today we taste tested this salty snack.  It was a hit!  My bread baking class all gave them the thumbs up.  This is my new healthy summer snack.



If anyone has any great ideas on serving the lupini bean, please leave a comment.  I have still most of a bag of dried beans!

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Hearty Winter Black Bean Soup

This is another hearty winter soup.  Black beans are so delicious and work well with pork.  I used my sister's spicy venison sausage for this.  I squeezed the meat out of the casing and browned it before adding to the soup.  Corn adds a little colour.  This freezes well and you can put it away for single servings.  The only addition I might make next time would be some barley or rice or potatoes.



Black Bean Soup



1/2 lb turtle beans

1 meaty ham hock

1/2 lb mild Italian sausage

1/2 lb spicy Italian sausage

1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped & sauteed with the garlic

6 cloves garlic, squashed

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 cups frozen corn

2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley



Soak the turtle beans overnight.  Drain and rinse.



Fill a stock pot with about 8 cups of cold water.  Add ham hock, soaked black beans, sauteed onion & garlic and all herbs & spices.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 2 hours or the beans are tender and ham falls off the bone.  Remove the ham hock and shred the meat.  Add the meat back to the soup.  Sautee the sausage and add to the soup.  Add the corn and flat leaf parsley.  Serve.  This would be nice with a dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche.



This freezes well.  Put it away for instant lunches.

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Dried Yellow Pea Soup

One day last fall during harvest season my back door neighbour had a 5 gallon pail of freshly harvested dried peas.  "Would you like some?"  he asked.  Never one to turn down food, especially local food, I accepted a coffee can filled with the dried yellow peas fresh from the field.

This recipe can be made either with the whole yellow peas or split peas.  If you have never cooked with whole peas then you must know that all the skins come off the peas as they cook.  All these little skins should be skimmed off the surface of the soup as they appear.



This is a wonderful warming winter soup traditionally made from dried yellow peas and served on Thursdays in Sweden.  Try a dab of grainy brown mustard on top of each serving to enhance both the presentation and the flavor.

Dried Pea Soup (Ärtsoppa, in Swedish)

    1 lb. dried yellow or green peas (whole if you can get them, but split ones work just as well)

    8 cups water

    2 finely chopped onions (2 cups)

    1 peeled whole onion studded with 2 cloves

    1 meaty ham bone -or- 2 to 3 ham hocks

    1 tsp. dried thyme

    1 tsp. ground ginger

    1 tsp. salt

    1/8 tsp. pepper

    1 tsp. grainy brown mustard

    1 large carrot, diced

    1 stalk celery, finely diced

    3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut in 1" pieces

    1 pound Danish Canadian-style bacon (pork loin) or Canadian bacon

Rinse and pick through 1 lb. dried yellow or green peas. If using whole peas, soak the peas overnight in their soup water (this isn’t necessary if using split peas so long as you can let the soup simmer for 2 to 3 hours).

Fill a large pot with 8 cups of water (or 6 if you like a thicker soup. You can always thin it with water as you go along if it looks too dense). Add the peas, 2 finely chopped onions, 1 peeled whole onion studded with two whole cloves, and a meaty ham bone (-or- 2 to 3 ham hocks).

Bring to a boil, then cover pot and reduce to a simmer over low heat for 90 minutes.

If using whole peas, skim off any pea skins that have risen to the surface. Remove 2 to 3 cups of the soup, puree in a blender or food processor, and return puree to the pot (this helps to thicken the soup).

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Add celeriac or celery, potatoes, diced carrots and Canadian bacon to soup during last 45 minutes of cooking time. Stir soup occasionally and check for desired consistency; if necessary, add a little hot water.  30 minutes before serving, remove the studded onion and the meat. Chop the meat (it should amount to about 1 cup) and return to pot.  Season the soup with 1 tsp. dried thyme, 1 tsp. ground ginger, 1 tsp. salt, and 1/8 tsp. pepper. Simmer 15 more minutes.

Serve, passing around grainy brown mustard to stir into soup to taste.

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