Fresh Garbanzo Beans

The Market this week-end had baskets full of fresh garbanzo beans. Mister Sive did a quick stroll through the stalls, picking us up provisions for WestWard, and brought back a large bag of them. I had never seen them before, or rather, they never really registered with me. They have now. They are much more tender than the canned variety, and are great as a snack or added to a salad. Encased in a light colored paper-like shell, which are easy to remove, many times there were 2 or 3 beans in each pod. There is a sweetness to the taste and the texture is much more tender than older beans. We removed them from the paper shell, yielding a small amount, perfect for cooking in a bit of extra virgin olive oil. I just added them to the hot oil, letting them crisp up just a tad. I removed them with a slotted spoon and sprinkled them with a good dose of Maldon flaky sea salt. We snacked on them in the afternoon, and then added them to a salad with dinner.

Plus, I loved the way the way they looked while still in the shell, filling up a large bowl sitting out on the counter too.