Spring Food with Roman Flair

Come springtime, the people of Rome head out to the countryside to feast on a local food tradition- freshly husked, raw fava beans with Pecorino sheep’s milk cheese. In honor of this tradition, today we prepared a delicious dish of Penne with Fave, Cacio & Pepe (Penne with Fava Beans, Cheese and Pepper). This is real Italian cooking, characterized by a very short list of seasonal ingredients that come together effortlessly for a memorable meal.

We will be honest with you, this dish takes some time to prepare because you must remove the beans from the pods and then peel off the outer skin. Alas, rainy days are inevitable this time of year and the preparation makes for great family time. Small hands of littles ones work well with this type of food prep. Or, put on your favorite music and peel your beans with a glass of wine and some conversation.

Once you have peeled all of the beans, they are simply simmered in a bit of minced spring onion, olive oil and water. The bright green color and delicate flavor of fresh fava beans is complimented cleverly with a simple cheese sauce, made with freshly grated Pecorino cheese, a bit of pasta cooking water and freshly ground black pepper. This sauce is savory and very satisfying over a bowl of warm penne pasta and the unique combination of fava beans and pecorino is an important annual food tradition we think you’ll love.

PENNE  WITH FAVA BEANS, CACIO & PEPE

Ingredients

• 3 lbs. of fresh fava beans
• ½ small spring onion, minced
• 3 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup of freshly grated Pecorino Romano, aged
• ¼ tsp. of freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup hot water + ¼ cup of pasta cooking water
• 12 oz. jovial penne of your choice

Like most Italian foods, this recipe will require some prep time for the vegetables and then everything will come together quickly. We recommend following these steps in the order listed.

Instructions

1. Remove beans from their shells, then make a small slit on the skin and pop the bright green bean out of its white skin. Clean all of the beans.
2. Put 4 quarts of water to boil in a large pot, then add sea salt to taste.
3. In a medium skillet, simmer the onion (you just need a sliver as you don’t want to overpower this dish with onion) and olive oil on low heat until the onion is soft, about 3 minutes.
4. Add the fava beans with ½ cup of boiling water from the pot and cook on medium heat, covered, until the beans are softened. If your beans are small and rather fresh, we recommend tasting after three minutes. Enjoy them with a bit of firmness and very bright green color. If your fava beans are very big, you may have to cook them a bit longer, but still test after a few minutes. When the beans are cooked, turn off the burner and set the skillet aside.
5. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package instructions.
6. Grate a cup of Pecorino cheese and add to a small mixing bowl. Mix with black pepper, then whisk in ¼ cup of pasta cooking water to make a creamy sauce.
7. Combine the cheese sauce with the fava beans in the skillet.
8. Drain the pasta and toss well with the beans and cheese sauce. Serve right from the skillet.