Fava Beans

It's fava bean season, and I've made them twice in the past two weeks, inspired after reading an article by the incomparable Amanda Hesser in the "The New York Times Magazine" food section. (Read it here while you can; it may eventually retreat to the paid archives.)
I became a major fan of hers after reading Cooking for Mr. Latte: A Food Lover's Courtship, with Recipes. Ms. Hesser is now editing the magazine's food page, and it's one of my favorite Sunday reads. Most newspapers publish their food sections on Wednesdays, which, I must admit, is very practical -- it gives you time to plan meals for the weekend. But most of my free time is on the weekends, and I like to read food writing then.
Now if you are of a certain pop cultural bent, you thought of a something immediately when you read the words "fava beans." You were thinking, "A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti. FFFfffftt!" That would be from the movie version of Silence of the Lambs. But if you have read the excellent novel by Thomas Harris, you know the original line is, "I ate his liver with some fava beans and a big Amarone." I didn't drink Chianti or Amarone with my fava beans, but the spouse and I got quite a kick out of saying the movie line three or four times while I prepped the beans.
***SPOILER ALERT*** Plot points to be revealed about "The Silence of the Lambs" and its sequel "Hannibal"!
I really love the novel "The Silence of the Lambs," and I read it regularly from time to time. It's a well-constructed thriller, much like "Presumed Innocent." (See my previous post on re-reading books here.) The sequel, "Hannibal," on the other hand, makes me laugh. At the conclusion of "Hannibal," the serial killer psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter gets together romantically with young FBI agent Clarice Starling. It's hard to explain just how improbable and inappropriate this plot development is. I've been trying to think of a literary equivalent ... It's as if Holden Caulfield decided to go back to Pencey Prep and really apply himself. Or if Atticus Finch decided he'd be better off focusing his law practice on personal injury cases ... It just undermines the character of the characters.
I will stipulate that reasonable people can disagree. There's an interesting, raging debate on the book on Amazon.com, in the personal reviews section. You can find that section here. Make sure you scroll down to get to some of the negative and mixed reviews.