Yesterday was my first "cooking" post of MoFo '12, but as much as I love 'em, cold salads just don't cut it for all of you. So today I'll wow you with some roasted vegetables; it is fall after all.
It all started out with these large, flat beans that I picked up from the Red Bank Farmer's Market. The proprieter of the stand informed me that they were actually Italian* beans, and that they should be prepared as you would string beans.
Long, flat, and robust; I really appreciated the extremely high proportion of bean to ends. In other words, I hate cutting the ends off of string beans, and therefore hold particular aminosity towards the scrawny ones.
I like my string beans lightly cooked so that they retain their crunch, so I sauteed these in toasted sesame oil with garlic, black pepper, crushed red pepper, and a bit of Bragg's just until they were bright green.
While that was happening, I roasted curry cauliflower from The Skinny Bitch Ultimate Everyday Cookbook (p. 175).
I suppose I could have added another ingredient, but at this point I decided to just make some rice (medley), squirt on some sriracha, and call it a meal.
When people say, "I could be vegan if..." they mean if someone else would shop, wash, prepare, cook, and plate. Even though I'm vegan, I'm just as guilty. Just do it!!
* I don't recommend Googling "Italian string beans" as it will depressingly net a slew of "recipes" for string beans "cooked" in butter and Italian dressing. Yes, really.
It all started out with these large, flat beans that I picked up from the Red Bank Farmer's Market. The proprieter of the stand informed me that they were actually Italian* beans, and that they should be prepared as you would string beans.
Long, flat, and robust; I really appreciated the extremely high proportion of bean to ends. In other words, I hate cutting the ends off of string beans, and therefore hold particular aminosity towards the scrawny ones.
I like my string beans lightly cooked so that they retain their crunch, so I sauteed these in toasted sesame oil with garlic, black pepper, crushed red pepper, and a bit of Bragg's just until they were bright green.
While that was happening, I roasted curry cauliflower from The Skinny Bitch Ultimate Everyday Cookbook (p. 175).
I suppose I could have added another ingredient, but at this point I decided to just make some rice (medley), squirt on some sriracha, and call it a meal.
When people say, "I could be vegan if..." they mean if someone else would shop, wash, prepare, cook, and plate. Even though I'm vegan, I'm just as guilty. Just do it!!
Looks tasty. Wish I got a chance to walk around and shop at Red Bank!
ReplyDeleteThe beans look really good and make me wonder about the enormous beans I passed up recently. It looked like about four of them would serve two people. But I was worried they would be tough and fibrous. How can you tell if they are meant to be extra large or are just overgrown? The ones I saw we're scarlet runner beans.
ReplyDeleteBYOL- The early bird gets the worm.
ReplyDeleteAndrea- I think I've seen the ones you're talking about and I'm pretty sure they have to be shelled. The only reason I knew about these was because I asked; my initial inclination was also to just pass them up...
You know, I've never really been a big fan of flat beans like this. maybe it was a weird experience with a bean like Andrea was talking about? But I think it's more of a flavor/texture thing - too sweet, too...rubbery? maybe I should cook them less like you do here. Or I could just focus on the cauliflower, which never fails me.
ReplyDeletefoodfeud- that's funny you say that because I thought they were slightly less sweet than regular beans, but definitely crisp- not chewy! (blech)
ReplyDeleteI am always on the lookout for new roasted cauliflower recipes! Yours look great, so thank you for the recipe link!
ReplyDeletexo
kittee