Wednesday 30 July 2008

Transition Beans

Aren't these purple beans gorgeous? I have neglected to post about Weeks 6 and 7 of my CSA Bounty, but I just had to post about these beans.

I have never seen aubergine colored beans before - they are beautiful just to look at. They came with our Week 7 CSA bounty yesterday, along with some of the bright green beans I'm used to seeing. So I had to cook some up along with a few almonds. Lo and behold - these beans change color!

I first noticed it when I put them in the pan and went to flip them, pancake style:
After about 10 minutes of slow cooking in the skillet, the purple beans had turned completely green. There is a scientific explanation for it, but I just think it's neat. Those three beans that are still really bright are beans I picked right from my own garden after work today! They were also very delicious. Beans with almonds is one of my favorite ways to eat beans, and a good combination of things for my vegetarian self.

I received my copy of the Transition Towns Handbook today, which is why I named these beans Transition Beans. Their proper name is Royal Purple Beans, but I have a feeling the Transition Bean name is going to stick with me for a while!

Alright, time to make a cup of tea and dig into that Transition Town Handbook...

3 comments:

J said...

Those beans are beautiful. I've never seen purple beans before. And interesting that they turn green once cooked, what a neat vegetable.

By the way, beans and almonds sound like a great meal. Do you season them with anything in paticular?

Theresa said...

I didn't season these with anything actually. I just sauteed them in a little margarine. I find that slivered or sliced almonds are a bit nicer to work with in this dish, but the whole almonds were also good.

Simply Authentic said...

These look so neat! I've never seen purple beans either and how interesting that they turn green while cooking! Thanks for sharing Theresa!