I was feeling a little fishy the other night, so I picked up some Dover sole filets and a few “what looks good to me today?” veggies. 

I cooked up a bit of bacon and then sautéed the vegetables in the bacon fat – sweet white corn, diced green patty pan squash and freshly shelled and blanched fava beans.  It’s the season for favas, something I haven’t prepared before.  The vegetable/bacon medley became the bed for my filets, which I enrobed in a bright charmoula sauce (minus the cilantro, which isn’t currently growing in my herb garden).  Baking in a 375 degree oven for 12 minutes left the sole flaky yet moist and the vegetables just a bit crisp.

Phoren’s Charmoula Sauce

Ingredients
½ c. fresh cilantro
½ c. parsley
5 garlic cloves
1/3 c. lemon juice
2 t. smoked paprika
2 t. salt
1.5 t. cumin, ground
½ c. olive oil

Steps
Blend all ingredients until well blended.

Lesson learned:  Fava beans are a three-step process:  shell the bean, blanch the bean, remove the tough skin from each bean.  Two-stepping does not produce the same results.