SC - losenges fryes/potage of beans boiled

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

>Potage of Beans Boiled
>
>For to make a potage fene boiles, tak wite benes & se+ hem in water, & bray
>+e benys in a mortar al to noght; & lat +em se+e in almond mylk & do +erin
>wyn & hony.  & se+ reysouns in wyn & do +erto & after dresse yt forth.
SNIP
>My notes and questions:
>
>Does this recipe really require fava beans?  I find myself doubtful because
>the original calls for "wite benes" and, if fava beans are indeed broad
>beans, they are green not white.

Aha! The mysterious wite benes! We just had a discussion of this 
sometime within the last 6 weeks - cuz that's how long i've been back 
from Morocco.

I rather doubt white beans are favas. And unlike what someone wrote 
somewhere on the web, i don't think it's dried green or yellow peas.

I discovered in my searches that black-eyed peas and a number of 
their relatives - which includes a white critter - are Old World 
(from India) and likely known in Europe at the time of your recipe.

So i think the white bean is this black-eyed pea relative i've seen 
called a cream pea or lady cream pea. I know they're popular in the 
Southern United States, which won't help you since you're in the Land 
of Oz. I haven't hit my local Indian markets, but suspect they might 
have them or something similar there - so that's where i suggest you 
look - Indian and Pakistani markets. It looks like a black eyed pea 
in shape, but is a creamy off-white in color.

>What sort of wine should I use - it is going to be cheap cask wine, but
>should it be white or red?  My feeling is that it is white, but I could be
>wrong.

Given that the other ingredients are white or light in color, i'd 
suggest white wine, but i don't really know what would be perfectly 
historically accurate.

A question for listees: Did they have green grape raisins back then 
or just red/purple grape raisins? Cuz if they had 'em, that might be 
an interesting ingredient, to keep the dish all pale colored...

Anahita