In the spotlight - Broad beans

Following on from my post yesterday about seasonal fruit and veg, it seems only right that I should choose a veg in season to put in the spotlight this week. It's the turn of broad beans. I can't say that these are a favourite veg of mine - I remember as a child I would remove the skin before I would consider eating them - but as variety is the spice of life, they make a nice change from the usual frozen veg. Anyone lucky enough to have their own allotment or enough space in their garden to grow veg might be familiar with podding the beans from their velvety cacoon. Though I've never sampled these raw like you might do with peas, you are meant to be able to eat them this way when the beans are young and fresh.

• Also called fava beans, they are thought to have become a feature of the Eastern Mediterranean diet around 6000BC.
• Broad beans can be grown in harsher climates and will manage to grow in clay soils or those with a higher salt content. If you've never grown veg before, they're a safe bet to start off with.
• Broad beans are a source of vegetable protein, Vitamin C and B vitamins, along with fibre.
• In some parts of the world - Mexico, South America, China and Thailand - broad beans are fried and then salted or spiced to produce a savoury snack.
• What might you like to do with your broad beans? Add them to stews, curries and pasta dishes; have them in a salad; mix them with rice and sweetcorn; serve them as a medley with other green veg - think courgette, green beans and cabbage.
• A type of Christmas cake, known as a "king cake", traditionally contained 1 broad bean within the mixture. When cooked, the person whose slice of cake contains the bean, is granted certain privileges. Although the bean is now often replaced with a small trinket instead, in parts of Europe and Mexico, they still use a broad bean.
• Broad beans have several significances in Italy. According to legend, all crops apart from broad beans are meant to have failed one year on Sicily and these saved the population there from starvation. They are seen as a symbol of good luck and are carried by some people. It is traditional to plant broad beans on 2nd November (All Souls' Day).

Broad bean and mint spread - perfect for topping bruschetta, oat or rice cakes.

• Cook 250g (9oz) broad beans according to pack instructions (or fresh will take about 5mins in boiling water), then drain and add to a bowl before crushing.
• Mix in 2 tsp of dried mint and a small glug of olive oil.

Broad bean salad

• Cook 250g (9oz) broad beans according to pack instructions before draining.
• Meanwhile dice an onion, and chop a tomato and half a cucumber.
• Combine all the veg with 2tbsp lemon juice, 1tbsp olive oil, 0.5tsp ground cumin and 1tsp dried parsley. Season with black pepper and mix well.