Spring in a Bowl: Fava Bean & Rapini Pasta

Fava beans are here baby!  As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I am a huge fan of fava beans.  They are creamy and rich and just taste of spring.  I also had some rapini (also known as broccoli rabe) in my CSA box, which is a bitter and nutty green.  I thought that the two would pair beautifully in a delicious pasta dish.  I happened to have some fantastic vegan raviolis but this dish would work just as well (if not better) with some silky linguine.  Enjoy!

Fava Bean & Rapini Pasta Serves 4

1 lb. pasta; linguine or spaghetti work best

2 lbs fresh fava beans; shelled

1 head rapini; chopped

3 garlic cloves; diced

1 lemon; zested & juiced

To prepare the fava beans: Bring water to a boil in a large stockpot.  While the water is coming up to a boil, remove all of the beans from the pods.  Once the water is boiling, add the beans for 60 seconds to loosen the skin.  Remove beans and place in a bowl of ice water and gently squeeze the beans out of the skin and set aside until ready to cook.

Bring a large stockpot of water up to a boil and prep all of your other ingredients.  Add a generous few pinches of salt to the boiling water and add your pasta.  Cook according to package directions.  When the pasta is about half way done, heat a large saucepan on medium heat with a dash of olive oil.  Add the fava beans with a splash of water and a teaspoon of lemon zest and let simmer for about 3-5 minutes, making sure not to over cook.  The beans should still be bright green and fork tender.  Add a pinch of salt.  When the pasta has just another minute to cook, add the rapini to the water.  Add the finished pasta and rapini directly to the beans, along with the garlic and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and sauté together for a minute or two.  Feel free to add some pasta water in order to loosen everything up and create a sauce.  Season with salt and pepper.

*Michelle Della Penna is the founder of Michy's, an organic/vegan foods company in Los Angeles.  Follow her on twitter.