Eaten very young, you don't even need to slip fava beans (alias broad beans), out of their skin, and they can be eaten raw. We get them when they are bigger, when they need to be podded, and then given a brief bath in salted boiling water before being plunged into cold water. This stops them cooking, and makes it very easy to skin them.
With a big bowl from the market last week, I decided to cook a fava bean risotto, having believed I had seen a recipe for one somewhere. But a trawl of all books on Italy and other subjects revealed nothing, so I made it up as I went along.
I cut three slices of bacon into thin lardons, and sauteed these in a mixture of olive oil and butter. Out came the bacon when just cooked, and in went 11/2 finely chopped onions, which were sauteed until golden. In went the rice and the simmering stock was added in ladleful by ladleful, until the rice was about three minutes from being ready.
Then, the skinned favas were stirred in to the rice, the bacon was added back, and everything cooked together for the last few minutes. After a grating of Parmesan had been stirred in, the marjoram was the final thing into the pot. At the table, we poured some good olive oil on top, and it was delightful, the favas still green and fresh and light.
If you have savory, you could use it instead of the marjoram, as favas and savory is an age-old combination.
Next time, I think I might borrow an idea from the Californian chef, Alice Waters, who makes a puree of the beans, and stirs that into a risotto which includes peas and asparagus. I shall perhaps leave out the peas and asparagus and maybe use some pecorino cheese to dress the risotto, as favas love salty pecorino. But that is next time.