The goodness of beans, peas and lentils - John Midgley

This new series of practical but beautiful little cookbooks focuses on healthy ingredients or groups of foods. Each gives factual information about the food's history, production, nutritional and medicinal value, and provides at least 30 recipes that use the food as a main ingredient, all tested and chosen for their simplicity of preparation.;Since they were first gathered in the wild in prehistoric times, beans, peas and lentils have been staple foods in many parts of the world. In the Americas, for example, they have been esteemed for thousands of years, and prehaps no other cuisines celebrates beans as exuberantly as Mexico's;Dried beans, peas and lentils are rich in protein, carbohydrate and minerals, and are an important source of dietary fibre, which helps to prevent intestinal disorders. When paired with starch or grain, which many traditional cuisines do instinctively, they offer the ideal balance of the essential amino acids and maximize protein consumption.;"The Goodness of Beans Peas and Lentils" is packed with information and has 30 recipes from many parts of the world, eg. Italian rustic bean stew with polenta and Chinese baby aubergines in black bean sauce.