Vegan Paella Valenciana

Variations on paella dishes have proliferated in recent times, many of them loaded with seafood; this Valencian paella is adapted from the traditional version of the dish, which commonly features rabbit, chicken, snails, artichoke, broad beans, and lima beans.

Recipe under the cut!

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घेवड्याची भाजी- Ghevda Bhaji recipe in Marathi- Kali Mirch by Smita

इंग्रजीत “FLAT BEANS ” म्हणून ओळखली जाणारी घेवड्याची भाजी महाराष्ट्रात घराघरांत बनवली जाते . कोणी तिला वालपापडी म्हणते तर गुजरात मध्ये ही सुरती पापडी या नावाने प्रचलित आहे.

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This is a short, sweet and cool one - perfect for summer.

I like beans a lot and eat them year round. I like them in their pods and out of their pods, and am not so seasonally biased that I only eat shelled beans in the winter and beans in their pods in the summer.

But, if I had to pick one bean dish that I only have in the summer, this would be it. The reasons for it, like much of my thinking in general, are more pragmatic than ideological - the lovely flat yellow beans required are only available in the warm months where I live, the cooking involves very little stove time, and the final product is best consumed well chilled.

Yellow Bean Salad

1/2 lb flat yellow beans

4  large garlic cloves, shredded or pressed

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

1 t sunflower oil

2 T apple cider vinegar

1/2 t sherry or red wine vinegar

1/4 t kosher salt

1 T cold water

Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. 

Trim the ends of the beans, and if you need too, cut each pod in two. 

Place the beans in the boiling water and cook for 4 - 5 minutes, until barely tender.

While the beans are cooking, mix together the oil, vinegar, water, garlic and salt.

Drain the beans well and place in a shallow bowl, spreading them out as much as possible. Pour the dressing over the beans while they are still hot, and garnish generously with parsley. 

Let sit until beans are room temperature, then refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. This dish gets better the longer it chills, so it can be made well in advance of serving.

And that's it! With a piece of crusty bread, perfect light summer lunch,

  To follow up something so simple, I thought dessert should be similarly easy going and decided to cut up this lovely Charentais melon, picked up at the same time as the beans. The French name made it sound fancier than a regular old cantaloupe, but unfortunately, I must have picked one that was not ripe enough. It smelled and looked delicious, but tasted barely sweet at all, requiring a follow-up with dessert number two - chocolate!

Planning: Oh, I have class until 5 and then training at 7pm.  I'll go home and cook my beans after class and have an early dinner!

(class runs late)

Prep: Oh, yay, cooking!  Let me pick out a new audoibook to listen to while I wash and cut all these beans and tomatoes and garlic, la la la la la, this is so nice!

(roommate comes in, we chat while I cut beans two at a time)

Cooking: Okay, it's in the pan!  Time for the olive oil and some heat!  I wonder if it's okay to put the lid on the pan?  Let me call Chris and see what he says... ::looks at phone:: HOLY SH*T IT'S 6:25!

New plan: hope and pray the beans are ready to come off the stove in 20 minutes and eat dinner after training.