eating italian | legumes

I asked a little while ago what people were interested on seeing around here and I hope I am delivering (with more regular posts about Trieste and some more photography tips). Another thing that people have asked about is what I am eating in Italy. Honestly, this has changed a lot. With more time available to me I am cooking more – which I love. On top of that though is the fact that a lot of foods that I used to buy regularly in London just aren’t available here so I have had to change to cooking more ‘Italian’ – although I am sure most Nonne would argue that my food is far from Italian!

One thing that I have been buying a lot more are legumes. Beans were an important food source in the typical ‘cucina povera’ (poor kitchen) because, well, they are cheap and the same remains true today. Currently, as a one income household and in a country where there aren’t as many vegetarian protein options this is great.

I go between canned and dried depending on time and what I want to use them for. The most popular beans available are borlotti, cannelini, chickpeas (cece) and lentils (lenticchie) (normally the green variety). Here are a few of my favourite ways of eating them:

>>> Borlotti are great for homemade baked beans.

>>> I love a cannelini bean spread which is great on ciabatta or crisp bread. All you need is one can of cannelini, a glug of extra-virgin olive oil, zest of half a lemon and a squeeze of lemon juice (or more to your preference) and some fresh salt. You can also add some fresh herbs if you have to hand. Blend with a handblender or masher. You want a ‘rustic’ spread with some solid bean bits still.

>>> I also love to throw cannelini beans or chickpeas in smooth soups to add protein and make them creamy without the cream!

>>> Roasted chickpeas! Better than crisps!

>>> Lentils are perfect for veggie lasagnes and stews and in summer they are a great gluten free alternative to add to salads to bulk them up. I made this abundance bowl this week but didn’t use any rice and just used lentils. I suggest you make it soon because it is delicious.

>>> Lentils are also pretty delicious just with some olive oil and salt.

So do you eat legumes? What are some of your favourite dishes?

(Excuse all the pictures of chickpeas. The light this afternoon was just gorgeous.)

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