queen of beans

I have to acknowledge the first mention of the queen of beans on my last entry: edamame. For those of you not familiar with my friend Ed, edamame (pronounced ed-ah-MA-may) is a Japanese word for soybeans. Simple, fresh soybeans. There are fields and fields of them in the midwest and if you are lucky, you can find yourself dancing in a glorious one on a perfect late summer day.

 

Many thanks to my sister for taking this fab photo of me and congrats to my cousin Christie for getting married the day before! It's my uncle's field of beans I'm goofing around in here.

Edamame are truly one of nature's perfect foods. As described by local bean entrepreneurs Soy-Zen-Zay, "Edamame is an amazing veggie that is a powerhouse of nutritional value......one might call it the Veggie of all Veggies." Ah, words for my heart!

You can find this wonder bean at your local grocery store in the frozen foods section. Years ago, I had to go in search of and when I found the green beauties, stocked up like mad because I never knew when I would find them again. Now, I buy edamame in the jumbo size at Costco for only $5! Happy, happy times.

We prefer edamame as simple as possible - steamed until bright, dazzling green with sea salt sprinkled on top. An important eating tip: don't eat the furry pods. (Hi, Shelly. Thanks for a dining moment I will never forget. :) Just pop the pod into your mouth and extract the savory, buttery beans with your teeth. You get the saltiness from the outer pod along with the wonderful taste of the edamame. Plus, it's fun to eat!



(Thanks go to http://www.flotation9.net/sweetfineday/ for this gorgeous image.)

Or, you can go to Saks website and spend $70 for fancy shmancy edamame dumplings!



However you choose to incorporate into your meals, I hope you enjoy the beauty of edamame!