Friday, August 20, 2010

Grilled Romano Beans with Capers, Egg, and Croutons

This was inspired by a green bean side dish in one of my Spanish cookbooks but I've take great liberties with the recipe so I consider this my own. And as usual there aren't precise measurements for one of my off the cuff dishes.

-About 1/2 pound long flat romano beans, tipped and tailed
-Olive oil as needed
-A generous tablespoon of salt packed capers, soaked in fresh water 10 to 15 minutes to reduce the saltiness, drained and squeezed dry in a towel
-About 1 cup of small bread cubes cut from a stale loaf of rustic bread
-1 freshly cooked hard boiled egg (I like mine medium boiled actually), coarsely chopped
-Flaky sea salt and fresh ground pepper
-Sherry vinegar and your best fragrant extra virgin olive oil

Toss the beans with a little olive oil to coat them on all sides. Grill the beans on a stovetop ridged griddle preheated over medium heat or on a barbecue until blistered and spotted brown on both sides and tender. Arrange the warm beans on a platter and set aside.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot add the capers and cook, tossing, until they have "bloomed" and become crisp. Remove from the skillet, reserving the oil in the skillet, and drain on paper towels.

Add the bread cubes to the still hot skillet and cook, tossing continuously, until they brown and crisp. Drain on towels.

Season the beans with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with some sherry vinegar and olive oil to taste. Sprinkle the chopped egg, fried capers and croutons over all and serve.

7 comments:

  1. Another very inspiring recipe. Each time I read one from you I get the urge to go to the kitchen and cook something.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This sounds delicious... makes me sad our beans haven't done very well this year!

    ReplyDelete
  3. My romano beans are just starting to produce and I have a handful to try this recipe, sounds simple and yummy, thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Not in response to this, but my sister's professional recipe writer friend says that you have to change almost nothing to claim a recipe as your own -- you certainly fit the bill with this one!

    ReplyDelete
  5. http://greenlifeinsocal.wordpress.comAugust 20, 2010 at 5:50 PM

    Oh, that sounds yummy. I don't have any Romano beans, but I'll bet it would be good with green beans too.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sounds delicious! I have everything but the capers on hand to make it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. sounds delicious. I've forgotten how much I like capers as well.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. I value your insights and feedback.