Favas and Peas with Lemon and Mint

Serves 4

• 1 3/4 - 2 lbs fava beans in pod to get 1 cup of fava beans (you might have more than 1 cup. You can always save the extra to add to another dish)

• Extra virgin olive oil

• 1 small shallot, peeled and finely diced

• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

• 1 C fresh peas

• 1/3 C water

• 1/2 small lemon + plus more if you want it a little more tangy

• Fresh mint, sliced into thin ribbons

• Sea salt

• Black pepper

Instructions

Fill a small/medium pot with water and bring it to a boil. The pot needs to be big enough to blanch your favas. While it's coming to a boil, shell your Fava beans and discard the pods. Once the water is boiling, pour in all your shelled favas and blanch for 1 minute. Remove the favas and place them directly into an ice bath. Once cool, drain and shell the beans again, removing the outer layer. Place all the favas in a bowl and set aside.

In a small sauté pan, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil on medium. Add the shallot and garlic, stir to coat, and cook until the shallot is soft and translucent, about a minute or two. Next, add the favas, peas, water, a good pinch of sea salt, and some black pepper. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the pan. Cook for 10 minutes or until the favas and peas are tender. Stir and taste from time to time and if the pan starts to get dry, feel free to add more water.

Once the favas and peas are done, remove the pan from the heat. Add the juice from 1/2 a lemon and a handful of chopped fresh mint. Taste. Add more lemon juice if needed. Add a generous drizzle of fresh olive oil to finish and season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.