I saw these gorgeous purple speckled beans at the farmer’s market last week and had to try them. The vendor said they were Dragon Tongue beans and that just made them even more appealing. I bought a pound and researched them when I got home, not much came up - I learned that they taste like a spicier version of the more common green bean, and I was disappointed to read that they lose their purple flecks when cooked.

I decided to make a crunchy butter to cook them in with ingredients I had on hand - a shallot, a handful of almonds, and a bit of lemon juice.

The citrus kept the taste light and allowed the subtle spiciness of the beans to come through. I was pleasantly surprised to see that while the pods did in fact lose their unique color with cooking, the individual beans remained purple, making a visually unique and delicious side dish..

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