beans – The View from a Drawbridge

My husband came across a recipe that called for dried, not canned, garbanzo beans. He asked me if I could pick some up since I was making one of my increasingly infrequent trips to the grocery store. “Sure!” I said.

Silly me.

The dried bean aisle of my grocery store was completely empty, with the exception of 3 bags of lima beans. (Apparently, I’m not alone in my dislike of lima beans.) So yeah, America is hoarding beans now.

I can sort of understand the instinct. Beans are reasonably priced. They store well. They’re filling. They’re the perfect food for the end of times. But lest we forget, they can be a pain in the butt to cook, frustrating for all but those who are into delayed gratification. A lot of people I know buy them with good intentions, and then never get around to actually cooking them. So there’s that.

But I do love a good garbanzo bean, I must admit. So when it was my husband’s turn to brave the contagion, I reminded him to look for them. He was going to a different store than I had. Sure enough, there was an empty aisle, inhabited only by a few bags of lima beans.

I kind of feel sorry for those lima beans. Abandoned. Not even deemed suitable for panic beaning. I’m glad lima beans don’t have feelings. I’m also glad I’m not a lima bean. Then nobody would love me. Waaaah!

Like the way my weird mind works? Then you’ll enjoy my book! http://amzn.to/2mlPVh5

I woke up the other day to strange sounds emanating from the back yard. I looked out the window and there was my landlady’s son, tearing up what little grass our dogs hadn’t already torn up for him. Turns out that we’re going to have a garden. A really large garden. I was told I could have a small section for myself. I told him I’d think about it, but my gut instinct was to say no thanks. I have enough going on. I don’t see myself as a gardener.

But the universe seems to have other plans for me. I started musing that it might be nice to create something. Plant it, watch it grow, eat something that I had brought into being. It would be nice to produce something positive out of the pure disaster that seems to be my life these days. (I mean, other than this blog, of course.) But what would I plant? It would have to be something unique and cool. No tomatoes or pole beans for this girl. No. I love to be different. In school I was the weird girl, and I think I often confuse my fellow bridgetenders. I don’t like to be predictable.

No sooner had I started forming these thoughts when a friend of mine posted on Facebook that she just went to the seed fair in Kansas, and she had picked up some seeds that she was willing to share. When I saw pictures of the plants she had seeds for, I basically shouted, “Ooooh! Ooooh! Me! Me!” So, without further ado, here are the veggies that I hope to grow in the back yard.

Purple Cauliflower

Romanesco Broccoli (this one appeals to the fractal artist in me.)

Wish me luck! And if you have any good recipes for these unique guys, let me know.

Tag: beans

I’m Glad I’m Not a Lima Bean