Only fifteen years ago Dr Fritz-Eckart Barth wouldn't have wasted a moment of his hectic timetable on the thought of beans, until as head of an archaeological excavation team at a Hallstatt salt mine he succeeded in recreating a variation of a southeast Alpine "Bohnenritscherts", a bean dish dating back at least 3,000 years. Since then he's been hooked. He proceeded to tirelessly comb through cookery books and archaeological literature for more recipes.

He found one at the medieval monastery of Tegernsee and another in the Roman cookery book by Apucius plus many, many more in the records of western civilisations. In the meantime, Franzi Helmreich joined in the research with Barth, not only contributing further important recipes but also including advice on the bean's health and fitness benefits.

Barth and Helmreich are to beans what the collected stories of the Brothers Grimm were to fairy tales: collectors, preservers and guardians.

Helmreich is more than just a clever and enthusiastic cook. She is also well adept at enhancing the recipes with important tips for a healthy lifestyle. Helmreich has incorporated the ideas of beauty and merit to this collection of recipes thereby lending a new and unmistakable appeal to the long neglected bean.

About the author:

Dr Fritz-Eckart Barth was born in 1939 in Vienna. He read pre- and ancient history in Vienna and Tübingen. He led an archaeological excavation team in the Austrian saltmines at Hallstatt. He was head of the department of pre-history at the Natural History Museum in Vienna until his retirement in 2000. Prior publications: numerous publications on the prehistoric research at Hallstatt.

Franzi Helmreich was born in 1956 in the Austrian province of Lower Austria.

She attended a study visit to Paris from 1974 to 1975. She worked in the marketing field for "Blue Bell" in the the United States from 1976 to 1978. She has worked as a photojournalist since 1978. Prior publications include, "Nur Knödel" – an illustrated dumpling cookery book.