This winter I was lucky enough to have a winter garden in Oregon’s lovely climate (much more hospitable to favas) and I got a nice stand of the fava landrace my family had acquired from Ianto Evans. The plan was to grow them for seed, but unfortunately we’re needing to move on short notice — the upshot is that I harvested about two plastic grocery bags full of favas all in one go, and got to eat fresh ones for the first time! I’m in love.

Sometime soon I’ll be making another batch of pasta with the remaining pound of favas in my freezer. Below is the recipe I made up a few weeks ago that’s definitely a keeper.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pasta (I used rigatone)
• Olive oil
• Garlic, minced
• 1/2 lb spicy pork sausage, sliced (I used Basque chorizo)
• 1 lb fresh fava beans, removed from pods, peeled if you prefer (I don’t)
• 1 lb broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
• Red pepper flakes, black pepper, and salt, to taste
• Pecorino romano, to taste

Method:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Strain, leave to drain, and return pot to stove.
• Coat the bottom of the pot with olive oil and turn to medium heat. Add garlic, sausage, and red pepper flakes, sautéing until fragrant.
• Add favas, broccoli, black pepper, and salt. Stir to coat with oil, and cover the pot. Steam-sauté, checking periodically, until vegetables are just barely cooked. If you’re able to get slight browning on some of the ingredients it’ll taste even better.
• Return pasta to pot, stir to combine, and serve with grated pecorino romano.