Ayocote Blanco Bean

A super-rich, mid-sized white bean that holds its shape through long cooking but manages to stay creamy. A versatile runner bean.  Suggestions: Salads, casseroles, soups, pot beans, dips, cassoulet, baked beans, pasta e fagioli  There really isn't a task in the kitchen that this bean can't handle. When fully cooked, it's somewhat starchy and has a mild potato flavor, which screams for bacon or pancetta. Keep cooking and it goes from dense to creamy and even a little buttery.  Originally from Oaxaca, Mexico, the Ayocote family was one of the first cultivated crops of the New World. They are grown all over central and northern Mexico but seem to have lost favor with Mexicans except in specific indigenous communities. If you plant them, you can enjoy the flowers, eat the pods as a broad bean, or shell them fresh for shelling beans, but the best way to enjoy them is dried so you can experience their fully developed flavor.  Simmer the beans on the stovetop or bake them in the oven with sim