lupin

noun

1. Any member of the genus Lupinus in the family Fabaceae.

   “Amongst the herbs to be administered when the charm was sung over him were a yew-berry, lupin, helenium, marsh mallow, dock, elder, wormwood and strawberry leaves.”

   “Lupins had been introduced into German agriculture in 1841 and had rapidly become a popular and useful feed for sheep as well as being used as a green manure plant for increasing soil fertility in poor-quality, sandy soils.”

2. A lupin bean, a yellow legume seed of a Lupinus plant (usually Lupinus luteus), used as feed for sheep and cattle and commonly eaten in the Mediterranean area and in Latin America although toxic if prepared improperly.

   “Lupins contain less than 3% starch (Evans, 1994), the main fermentable carbohydrate involved in rumen acidosis when cereal grains are fed to ruminants. For this reason lupins have generally been regarded as a completely safe feed for sheep and cattle, and required no gradual introduction (Rowe, 1995).”

   “Lupins, although a bean, are similar to olives aesthetically, and are equally good with breakfast. The trick is first to soak them overnight until rehydrated, then boil them for a few hours like any bean. They will not soften. Then soak them again, changing the water every day for several weeks until the bitterness is gone.”