LEGUMES

Bumble Bee, Hidasta Red, Cherokee Trail of Tears....what are they?  Indian lore or bugs?? They are beans or to be technical, some of the thousands of  legumes.  Legumes which include beans, peas, lentils, and peanuts are an ancient food item.  They are versatile, easy to grow, easy to store, affordable, and packed with essential nutrients.    Beans are second only to cereal grasses in their importance in our diets.  Beans are high in protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates, low in calories and sodium.  In fact beans are the richest source of vegetable protein, 21 to 27 percent when cooked.   The benefits of beans go on and on, other facts:

1. They are full of complex carbohydrates, but have a low or moderate glycemic index.  The complex carbs in  dry beans are digested more slowly than those in simple carb foods like bread, keep you more satisfied and less hungry.
2. They are rich in vitamins and minerals, such as high amounts of Vitamin B, potassium, zinc, iron, calcium, and magnesium.
3. They add more fiber to your diet to improve your digestive tract.
4. Finally, they are also rich in flavor and blend well with dark, leafy greens, tomatoes, peppers, chiles and are used in soups and pastas.  In fact, there are whole books dedicated to cooking beans.  Our favorite book is - BEANS by Aliza Green. Black Bean and Hazelnut Cakes, yummy sounding huh?  Yep - the book is packed with gastronomic delight.

Beans were so important in our ancient worlds that four major legumes lent their names to a prominent Roman family.  Fabius comes from the faba bean, Lentulus from the lentil, Piso from the pea, and Cicero from the chickpea! 



Calypso bean from 2009 harvest.



We have begun our bean harvest.  Bumble Bee, Hidasta Red, Cherokee Trail of Tears, Brockton Horticulture, Black Valentine, Ideal Market - names as rich and colorful as their heritage.  All of these beans have long histories and stories to go with them as they are all heirloom varieties passed down from generation to generation and as you can tell from the names - some of them left a trail of tears from the Smoky mountains to Oklahoma in 1839.

We will have them available for purchase in mid November.  Watch the WHAT IS AVAILABLE page above to see variety and use.