Photo: Thinkstock

If you come across cranberry beans at your greenmarket this week, make room in your basket alongside the peaches and tomatoes. These are some of the sweetest beans you'll ever find, and they're moist, too, which means they cook fairly quickly, in just 10 to 30 minutes. The beautiful legumes--which look like fat string beans, except they're pink- and white-speckled--are in season right now in many parts of the country. It's true that they will lose their gorgeous markings when you cook them, but they'll still taste vibrant and nutty. Also called shell beans or borlotti, they're delicious dressed simply with olive oil and sea salt, but here are six more seasonal preparations to try.

Cranberry Bean, Cherry Tomato and Cucumber Salad from La Tavola Marche
This pretty salad + crusty bread + a wedge of pecorino = your best lunch of the week.

Borlotti and Ricotta with Whole Wheat Spaghetti from Found While Walking
Barely a recipe--adjust the proportions to your liking, and toss in your favorite herbs--this pasta dish is fresh and hearty.

Cranberry Bean Bruschetta from Fresh Brioche
Simmered with garlic and water (plus bacon, a Parmesan rind and/or tomato) and sprinkled with sage, cranberry beans become a perfect topping for slices of toasted baguette.

Cranberry Bean and Sugar Snap Pea Salad with Gouda from MarcusSamuelsson.com
A no-cook salad dressed in a sweet and salty vinaigrette has an unexpected element: meltingly smooth bites of gouda cheese.

Fresh Shell Beans Over Polenta from Printer & Piemaker
This minimalist recipe allows for plenty of interpretation. The basics: gently boil the beans with some marjoram, slowly cook onions with thyme, and serve them together over creamy polenta drizzled with a little bit of good olive oil.

Cranberry Bean Hummus from The Parsley Thief
A cross between hummus and baba ghanoush (thanks to the addition of zucchini), this is a lovely spread for toasted pita bread triangles.

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Photo: Nuun

It's Wednesday, which means it's time for your middle-of-the-week goody. Here are a few things we're loving today.

Nuun Electrolyte Enhanced Drink Tabs, $24 for 48. Sports drinks can be too sweet, but not Nuun. Drop one of these discs into your water bottle for your next workout and get sugar-free, carb-free hydration. They come in fun flavors, too, like strawberry lemonade and lemon tea (besides classics such as lemon-lime).

VinniBag, $28. Carry anything fragile—wine, olive oil, antique tea cups—safely home with these inflatable bags that cushion breakables from airplane turbulence or less-than-dainty baggage handling.

Maybelline New York Great Lash Designer Limited Edition Collection, $5.50. The iconic pink-and-green tube gets a makeover in honor of this mascara's 40th birthday, courtesy of fashion designers Max Azria, Tracy Reese and Vivienne Tam.

Whimsy & Spice Marshmallows, $6 for 12. Husband and wife Mark Sopchak and Jenna Par make shortbread cookies, biscotti, brownies and other treats out of their Brooklyn kitchen. Their marshmallows—in flavors such as caramel, cardamom, lemongrass and maple—might just be too lovely to smush between graham crackers and chocolate...but you be the judge.

We all believe in change at Oprah.com. But when you're in jail, that change is all the more difficult—if not, in many cases, impossible (one study found that 52 percent of all offenders in America end up re-incarcerated). This summer, as the Today show originally reported in this moving, altogether inspiring interview, an organization called Hope House reconnects kids with their incarcerated fathers by offering both parties a chance to catch up at an in-prison summer camp, complete with sing-alongs and art projects.

Photo: Thinkstock

1. Wine and cheese is predictable.

2. Rum is not just for Caribbean cocktails. Dark sipping rums—which are meant for drinking neat, not mixing in piña coladas—can carry the flavors of roasted nuts, smoky oak, vanilla, cocoa and spices, just like wine. Barrie Lynn, a cheese expert in Los Angeles with an online show called Cheese Rules, suggests Neisson Rhum Agricole Réserve Spéciale or Mount Gay Extra Old Rum: "I haven't met a cheese they didn't love."

3. And about the cheese. Creamy, nutty aged Goudas, superaged sharp cheddars and fresh chèvre go especially well with rum. And while the drinks may be pricey (the Neisson costs about $67, and the Mount Gay is about $38), the cheese doesn't have to be; one of Barrie Lynn's favorites is a $3.75 tub of Widmer's Aged Brick Spread.

4. A little goes a long way. One bottle of rum is more than enough for a group of eight.

5. Pirate-themed novels! Discuss the finer points of  Treasure Island or Robinson Crusoe as you swill the sailors' favorite, Pusser's Rum.

6. Rum also pairs well with Dickens. The classic English writer (of whom Oprah's a fan) was actually something of a punch aficionado (here's his recipe for rum punch). Best cocktail for Great Expectations or The Mystery of Edwin Drood: Dark and Stormy.

7. Paper umbrellas. Because sometimes it is all about Caribbean daydreams. Here are O's recipes for the classic rum cocktails Cuba Libre and Mojito.

Photo: Courtesy of nOir

We recently reminisced about  friendship bracelets and how this simple accessory can link us to those we love most in our now grown-up worlds. So when we spotted O's fashion department wearing nOir's Shaka Lanyard Bracelets ($25) we couldn't wait to share yet another fashion throwback find with you. While we recall rainbow piles of plastic string and hours spent making keychains with our bunk mates, the gold toggle clasp and sleek design of this bracelet take this arts and crafts activity to a new level. Brighten up a friend's day with one of these colorful bangles—all without having to re-learn the lanyard box stitch. Bonus: These bracelets are water-friendly, meaning the recipient won't have to worry about getting them wet while she's washing dishes or enjoying the remaining days of summer at the beach.

Would you wear this bracelet? Give it to a friend? What's your favorite summer camp memory?

Keep reading for more stylish ideas:

7 turquoise accessories to rock this summer
Get a necklace that supports your favorite charity
Check out a charity project turned big (sparkly) business

What would it take to change your life for the better? It may be less than you think—we’ve got mini-makeovers to help you upgrade everything from your workout to your weekend. #6: Customizing your candy.

Photo: Gregor Halenda

Mmm, dark chocolate with yogurt-covered pretzels, rainbow sprinkles, and salty potato chips. Or—oh, God—milk chocolate with pumpkin seeds, dried raspberries, and flaxseeds. No—wait—white chocolate with toffee bits and Fruity Pebbles. Hungry? Sites like chocri.com, chocomize.com, and chocbite.com let you customize your own bar from scratch, with scores of sweet, savory, and spicy add-ons. Chocolate with Pop Rocks, anyone?
 



Keep Reading:
30 days of makeovers
20 favorite childhood desserts (with adult twists)
Perfect wine and chocolate pairings
7 decadent chocolate treats

Photo: Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger, BorderGrill.com

It's not just "quinoa" that trips me up every time, no matter how many times a recipe reminds me it's pronounced "keen-wah." Despite my rusty French and food-centric knowledge of Italian, I still puzzle over how to sound out many dishes from those countries, to say nothing of food words in Quechua (that's where "quinoa" comes from) or Nahuatl (the Aztecan dialect responsible for the word "chipotle"). Hiding behind the unusual words, though, are some delicious ingredients and dishes. Here are three, along with their pronunciations and a convincing argument for why I need to master these foreign words once and for all.

Achiote (ah-chee-OH-tay, Spanish)
This common ingredient in Mexican cooking can actually induce an "achoo," since it's a spicy blend of annatto (a peppery pod from the achiote tree), Mexican oregano, cumin, clove, cinnamon, black pepper, allspice, garlic and salt. Achiote often comes in a paste form, where it adds a red color and a little kick to dishes like Yucatan Pork Tacos (pictured).

Clafouti (klah-fu-TEE, French)
For the longest time, whenever I read this word, I pictured someone named Fifi wearing a frilly pink nightgown. But now I know it's an easy, pancake-like dessert, made by pouring a batter over fresh fruit and baking it until it puffs. Pop this bubbly, custardy cherry clafouti into your oven midmeal and 30 minutes later, "clafouti" will be your new favorite word.

Fregola (FRE-go-la, Italian)
Saying the word for these tiny, toothsome balls of pasta--think Israeli couscous--could sound like something you'd say to your worst enemy. But if you roll the "r," add some Parmigiano-Reggiano (roll those r's, too, just to make your dinner companions laugh), plus fresh corn, peas or asparagus, you have a lovely, light summer meal. This recipe from Elaine Louie, who writes the New York Times column "The Temporary Vegetarian," is a cinch.