Bad taste distractions

In a world as nutzoid as ours, sometimes it pays to consider absurdities. My proposal for today’s absurdity is Lima Beans.

Aside from thinking they should be banned for tasting so bad (bitter and slightly furry, as I recall, though it has been a while), I’ll admit that this deep-seated bias probably goes back to childhood and my mother’s cooking. She meant well, I’m sure, but tinned vegies are a sad excuse for greens on the plate. Mushy and vaguely metallic.

My mouth makes a bad face just thinking about them.

And why the heck are they called LYE-ma beans? They seem to be credited as coming from Peru. And I’m pretty sure that Lima, Peru is pronounced LEE-ma. Not that calling them LEE-ma beans would make them taste any better.

The biggest absurdity about these nasty legumes? You couldn’t eat them raw (the yummiest mode for nearly every decent vegetable) even if you could find them at your local farmer’s market. They have to be cooked, or they’re poisonous. Their nasty little secret? Cyanide. Maybe that’s the reason I knew enough to steer clear of them.

Now, if only I could find such a logical justification for not liking pumpkin pie.