PUREED CRANBERRY BEANS

These autumn harvest beans are also called BORLOTTI in Italian.

Look for the fresh mottled red and white marbled pods. Pop them out of their shells, cover with salted water and several cloves of peeled garlic. (Hazan adds bay and sage leaves and a potato.) Bring to a boil then simmer until the beans are soft. The beans turn a creamy grayish color, rather like chestnuts. (You can ask how long to cook them but I can't be precise. I can only tell you that fresh beans cook a lot faster than dry ones.) When they are tender drain and puree them in a food processor. Add some olive oil,and salt and pepper. Spoon into a dish and eat with bread or vegetables. I used some the other day in tuna salad instead of mayonnaise.