Bryony Rose Textile Menagerie- what the hell is that squirrel doing???
And the rant proceeds: Spent two hours at the new Italian market putting together a fancy schmancy meal for Saturday. They would have one thing but it meant I shouldn't do another thing I had planned, then we would start the new plan and hit the wall when another ingredient was missing and on and on. But I loaded everything in the car and sped home since it was so hot today. Then I commenced cooking. Forgot to eat lunch and stuck a cold cup of coffee in the microwave and whammy- forgot that too inspite of the insistant beeping. But I got three or four things done for the antipasto and a head start since I will be busy both days.
One thing I got was a big 9-cup carton of fava beans. I have never particularly liked them but thought for the Italians it might be a good thing to have. 9 cups of beans is a lot, right
?
Here are the pods after removing the beans from them and before they hit the garbage:
Here are the pods after removing the beans from them and before they hit the garbage:
And here they are still wearing their little neoprene jackets, held on with super velcro, and quite a lot less than I had anticipated.
Here we have the little comfy jackets on the right and what's left of my fava beans on the left. I got out the measuring cup:
About 3/4 of cup.
Not counting the shopping or transportation or the eventual cooking and serving, just my time involved in shelling these damn things, it took two hours. Now that folks are talking about raising minimum wage to $15, I have somehow ended up owing myself $30 for these favas. I couldn't find the sale receipt so let's estimate maybe $5 just because it's a rounder number. Total cost to ME is now $35 or approximately $5.83 per oz. I can buy Kobe beef for $3.25 an oz.
Oh damn, I got a pig picture instead of a beef picture. Oh well. But you get my point. ummm, bacon...
Now, to get those faves to the counter in the store there were planters and pickers and farmers and subsidies. Then of course there were marketers and produce storage and trucking and delivery and inspectors and guys who make plastic boxes to put it in. All for $15 and hour, one lunch break and all the favas that nobody in their right mind would eat At the store there are delivery guys and craters and unpackers and produce stackers. Sometimes a lady demonstrates how to cook something too, and tells you that if you buy this-here- imported cheese-ummm- that makes it!
OK, so I have my 6 oz. of beans ready to cook up in the morning. I should have saved the jackets because they looked like an eagle's face and beak, like an ugly coat, like the Venus of Willendorf, and a v-jayjay, as Oprah would say.
All this math, even though I settle for approximate-math, made my back and legs hurt, then my head hurt, then I started feeling sorry for myself so TY turned on the hot tub for me to 'relax'- he does this when he wants me out of his sight lines. I put on my suit and lolled about until my feet got pruneish, so I got dressed again and went back to UNdressing favas.
So, that's all folks. I'll let you know what I do with them tomorrow- do you think they will feed 8? Where is that loaves and fishes guy when you need him and I wonder if the magic extends to fava beans? Anybody know?
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