Assunta's Beans: Mille Grazie!

I'm not sure how I developed a love affair with fresh shell beans. I'm not referring to the lima beans that were a staple in the Pennsylvania Dutch heartland where I grew up. I'm talking about cannellini, flageolet, and bortolini beans. The kind with romantic-sounding names that show up as ingredients in French and Italian cookbooks -- except you can usually only find them in their dried form here in the States. It begs the question: why go to all the trouble to dry them, when they're so marvelous cooked up fresh? I suspect the real reason is that they're very fragile -- and that so few home cooks understand how to prepare them.

The latter is a theory I get to test out every year when, as summer fades into autumn, fresh cranberry beans appear in the farmers' markets in Boston and Seacoast NH. Because their season seems so brief, I start looking out for them just before Labor Day. When I find them, as I did this weekend at the White Gate farm stand at the Seacoast Growers' Market, another customer inevitably asks me what I'm going to do with them. (In fact, it was just such an encounter that inspired this blog!) That's when I tell them about Assunta's beans.

Marcella Hazan's Italian cookbooks are a great source of recipes and stories about that cuisine. In Marcella Cucina, she talks about the delicious beans that Assunta, her husband Victor's one-time Tuscan housekeeper, used to make him. Perhaps it was the story, but I craved the opportunity to taste them for myself. So you can imagine that the first time I actually located fresh cranberry beans, it was ecstasy. I was not disappointed. Cooked at a bare simmer, with sage and garlic, in minimal water and a big splash of olive oil, they become fragrant, creamy, and flavorful. I must warn you, they'll lose that beautiful cranberry color, but they taste so good, you'll probably find yourself whispering "grazie" to Assunta -- and Marcella -- too.

Assunta's Beans
from Marcella Cucina by Marcella Hazan

Ingredients
1 lb unshelled fresh cranberry beans (about 2 cups shelled)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2/3 cup water
4 to 6 fresh sage leaves
3 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
A good extra virgin olive oil to drizzle over the beans when serving

Instructions

1. Shell and rinse the beans.
2. Put the beans and all other ingredients in a small lidded pot. The beans should be just covered with water. Moisten a clean kitchen towel, squeezing out the excess water, and fold it to fit the pot lid. (Use one you won’t mind staining.) Cover the top of the pot with the towel and set the lid
3. Set the pot over a very low flame and cook slowly at the barest simmer. After 45 minutes, check the liquid and add a few tablespoons of water as needed. Repeat twice more in 20 minute intervals. You may have to adjust the quantity of water to match the level of heat. (The beans should never be soaking in water, but should have just enough to keep from sticking.) The beans should be done in about an hour and forty five minutes. Taste them. They should be firm but tender and the skin should have remained whole without cracking.
4. Drizzle with fresh olive oil when serving.
These are best served the moment they are done, but they can be made through the end a day in advance. Refrigerate in a tightly sealed container and reheat gently with a tablespoon or so of water.

A Berry Fine Dessert

I know many people who, when ordering in a restaurant, will happily forgo the appetizer course in order to save room for dessert. I, however, am not one of them. That's not to say that I don't enjoy a rich chocolate mousse or a slice of my brother-in-law's coconut cake or lemon curd tart every now and then. But truth be told, I'm just as happy to have the cheese course for dessert.  So you can imagine, that when I offered to make dessert for a recent impromptu potluck, my guests were a bit taken aback.

It was a Tuesday, which not only meant that I was likely to find the season's first blueberries and raspberries at the Farmers' market in Copley Square, Boston. but that I might be able to get some of Narragansett Creamery's award-winning ricotta to go with those berries.

The first time I tasted that ricotta was a revelation. It was rich, creamy, slightly tangy. I couldn't wait to savor it in lasagna, with figs and prosciutto, and whipped with honey and berries. The latter was my plan for that evening.

In preparation, I'd found a recipe online at Epicurious.com, and made sure I had some of my favorite honey -- from White Gate Farm in Epping, NH.

The recipe couldn't have been easier -- all I had to do was use the food processor to whip the ricotta and the honey together with some sugar and vanilla,  sprinkle a little sugar and lemon juice on the berries, and put them together at the last moment.

The result was heaven -- light and airy, yet full of flavor. It tasted just like I had imagined. And it looked as festive as could be. My guests loved it -- and so did I, because you know what? I got to have the cheese course for dessert after all.

Whipped Ricotta with Honey and Mixed Berries

from Bon Appetit

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

2 cups whole-milk ricotta cheese (NOTE: If you can find fresh ricotta, which is less grainy than some of the commercial types, use it and omit the cream cheese.)

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

4 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons honey

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups mixed fresh berries (such as blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and halved strawberries)

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Preparation

1. Blend ricotta, cream cheese (if using), 2 tablespoons sugar, honey, and vanilla in processor until smooth. Transfer to bowl. Cover bowl and refrigerate until ricotta mixture is slightly set, about 2 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated. Stir before using.)

2. Combine berries, lemon juice and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in large bowl; toss to coat. Let stand 30 minutes at room temperature.

3. Divide ricotta mixture among 6 wineglasses. Top with berries and serve.