Fava Yogurt Soup

The other day I spotted fava beans at the local grocery store. I remembered them from one of Chef Giada De Laurentiis' cookery show. almost in an impulse i bought a bunch. not too many just a few to find out how they taste. and when it was time to cook them i sat browsing the web for fava recipes. Since Mr MN does not have fish Chef Laurentiis' recipe of Red Snapper with Fava Bean got ruled out. so i searched some more before stumbling upon a few fava recipes in the Heath section of  New York Times. Fava and Buttermilk Soup was the simplest one and i decided to try it out last night. just to suit our taste i made some minor changes and wowed Mr MN and baby with this tasty and super healthy Fava Yogurt Soup. 

as i mentioned before, i did not have a lot of fava beans in hand. after skinning the beans i had a mere half cup of beans at disposal. though the soup was nice and flavorful and great as an appetizer, next time i'll probably make it with double the amount of fava beans. with that in mind i have slightly modified  the quantity of ingredients listed for the recipe.

Fava Yogurt Soup

adapted from Martha Rose Shulman's Fava and Buttermilk Soup in  NY Times

ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 large garlic clove, grated
• 1/2  of a small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 inch ginger, grated
• 1 teaspoon dried chives
• 3/4 - 1 cup skinned fava beans
• salt to taste
• 1/2 cup yogurt
• 1 cup water
• 5-6 mint leaves, finely chopped

what i did

• first i skinned the fava beans, that is put the shelled fava beans into a pot of salted boiling water and boiled them for five minutes. then draining off the water transferred them immediately into a bowl of ice-cold water. once the beans cooled down i slipped off their skins by pinching the eye of the skin and gently squeezing it. and that it my skinned fava beans were ready.
• next in a saucepan i heated the oil. then added the garlic, onion, ginger and dried chives to it and cooked for about a minute. 
• when the garlic began browning, i added the skinned fava beans, seasoned it with salt and cooked for a couple of minutes. 
• i then emptied the saucepan into the blender, added the yogurt to it and pureed the contents. (this puree tasted REALLY good and i intend to use the puree in some other dish very soon !)
• i then added the water and thinned the consistency for the soup and ladled the soup into the a bowl and a cup, garnished it with finely chopped mint and served.

Because I had not planned it well enough I had to serve the soup right away, but with the mint this would taste really good had it been chilled. so in case you plan to try out (in fact you must it out) do plan in advance and serve the soup chilled. and in a cup. because for some reason i thought that the soup tasted even better when sipped from a cup !

I am submitting this soup to this month's  Challenge of No Croutons Required, a monthly vegetarian soup and salad challenge hosted jointly between Jacqueline from Tinned Tomatoes and Lisa from Lisa's Kitchen. 

This month Lisa is hosting the challenge and she has chosen appetizer soups or salads as the theme and this soup fits in nicely with the theme.

I am also sharing this recipe with the following weekly food parties...

Monday Food:  

Marvelous Mondays @ This Gal Cooks, Meatless Monday @Veggie Mama's,  Meatless Monday My Sweet and Savory, Just Another Meatless Monday @ Hey What's for Dinner Mom, Tuesday Food:  Tempt my Tummy @Blessed with Grace, Totally Tasty Tuesday @ Mandy's Recipe Box, Tasteful Tuesday Party @ Nap Time Creations,  Show Me What You Got @ Our Delightful Home,  Hand Made Tuesday @ Ladybug Blessings, Share it Link Party @ Winthrop Chronicles, Hearth and Soul Blog Hop, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday  Wednesday Food : Wow Me Wednesday, What's Cooking Wednesday @ Confessions of Overworked Mom, Cast Party Wednesday @ Lady Behind the Curtain ,  Wednesday Whatsit @White Lights on , Show and Share @ Semi Homemade Mom, Wonderful Food Wednesdays at @ Home Take 2, Seasonal Celebration @ Natural Mother's Network, Whole Foods Wednesday #98

Thursday Food:Link it Up Thursday @ Seven Alive, Creative Thursday @ Michelle's Tasty Creations, Fantastic Thursday @ Three Little Chiefs, Thriving on Thursdays @ Domesblissity, Freedom Friday @ My Turn, Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage Friday Food: Foodie Friday @ Home Maid Simple, Friday Favorite (DYI too) @ Simple Sweet Home, Foodie Friday @ Not Your Ordinary Recipes,  Foodie Friday @ Rattlebridge Farm , Weekend Wonders @ The Thriftiness Miss, Friday Food Frenzy @ Mostly Food and Crafts , Weekend Potluck @ Sunflower Supper Club,  The Weekend re-Treat @The Best Blog  Recipes, Fresh Bites Friday @ Real Food, Wellness Weekend, Weekend Kitchen Link Party