Brown Buttered Farmer’s Cheese Vareniki with Fava Beans and herbs

Favas. Brown Butter. Herbs. Yes please! Fresh fava beans have a short season so get them while you can. Otherwise, frozen favas or edamame, lima beans, or butter beans make lovely stand-ins. Be sure to have enough fat in the pan so our farmer’s cheese vareniki dumplings cook evenly.

PREP TIME 10 minutes (plus 20 if you are preparing fresh favas)

COOK TIME 15 minutes

SERVING SIZE about 30 dumplings

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons plain yogurt

½ teaspoon garlic powder

Salt to taste

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 bag (8.8 oz) Kachka Farmer’s Cheese Vareniki Dumplings

½ cup shelled fresh fava beans (from about 1 pound), blanched 30 seconds then peeled, or double-peeled frozen, thawed

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Handful of minced fresh chervil, tarragon, or parsely

METHOD

In a small bowl, mix yogurt with garlic powder and salt to taste. Set aside.

Put a pot of water on the stove to boil. While waiting for the water to come up, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat, swirling the pan occasionally for even cooking. The butter will foam and become golden and then toasty-brown and smell nutty. Keep the pan on the stove. When the water is at a boil, cook the dumplings according to the package directions. 

When dumplings are drained, rewarm the brown butter over medium heat and transfer the dumplings to the skillet in an even layer. Shake the pan to prevent sticking or use a spatula (turner) to loosen them and continue to cook. After around 1 minute when you see the bottoms start to turn brown, flip the dumplings over then stir in the fava beans, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the yogurt and herbs.

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