Healthy and hearty food seems to be appropriate fare to end this year or to start the next one. So this week I`m offering recipes that pay homage to one of the most welcome food trends of this decade, the growing interest in beans and other legumes.
The range of beans now available in specialty stores, if not all supermarkets, is truly astonishing. Anasazi, talosanos, cranberry, rattlesnake are a few of the names to learn. Try them individually or in the popular bean- soup mixes that may contain combinations of as many as 15 types.
Of course, it should comes as no surprise that the Earth has nurtured so many different beans. There is scarcely a cuisine we can label ”ethnic” that does not contain a rich repertory of bean dishes. Not only did beans grow in the most arid of lands and the most difficult of climates, they provided essential protein for primitive peoples long before anyone knew what protein was (or amino acids, for that matter). Instinctively, cooks with scant-if any- recourse to animal protein combined beans with grains such as rice and with greens and served what we now are told is the diet of the future.
My intent, especially during this holiday season, is not to preach the gospel of nutrition. Instead, I`ll recommend these dishes because they taste good and are ideal fare to serve on a frosty day. If we eat our fill, we will gain the nutrients as a hidden bonus.
Time has long been an enemy of dried beans. Soaking and cooking can take hours or even overnight. Some quicker methods have been developed for conventional cooking, the microwave can cut preparation time, and the pressure cooker can cut it still further. It`s also necessary to remember that beans are bland. They need to be cooked attentively so they retain texture and then dressed with flavorful, colorful ingredients, and the more the merrier. As for the other, notorious quality beans possess, I`ll leave any discussion of that to Dave Barry.
Three-bean and arugula salad, the most photogenic of this recipe trio, can be served as part of a help-yourself New Year`s Day buffet during or between football games. The other two should be welcome at casual gatherings or family meals.
THREE-BEAN AND ARUGULA PARTY SALAD
12 to 16 servings
2 cups black beans
2 cups navy or Great Northern beans
2 cups black-eyed peas
1/2 teaspooon dry mustard
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sherry wine vinegar (substitute red-wine vinegar)
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 shallots, minced
2 red onions, sliced thin
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 cups arugula or raw spinach leaves
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped parsley for garnish
1. Soak the black beans, navy beans and blackeye peas separately for 8 hours or overnight.
2. Cook beans in separate pots by package directions.
3. While beans are cooking, make a vinaigrette by combining the dry mustard and vinegars and stirring in the olive oil.
4. Drain the cooked beans, add the garlic, shallots, sliced onions, salt and pepper. Dress with the vinaigrette and toss. Set aside for at least 4 hours.
5. Shortly before serving, add arugula and lemon juice to beans. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Serve from a large bowl garnished with chopped parsley.
LA SORBRONADE (WHITE BEAN AND VEGETABLE STEW)
Four servings
1 cup white haricot or Great Northern beans, presoaked following package directions
1 pound salt pork
1 large or 3 small turnips, peeled and sliced into rounds
3 carrots, peeled and cut into rounds
1 rib celery, cut into 1 1/4-inch pieces
1 medium onion stuck with 2 cloves
3 or 4 sprigs parsley
2 branches fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
1 large bay leaf
6 peppercorns
2 medium potatoes, sliced
1 large clove garlic, chopped
2 cups beet greens or kale
Salt and pepper
4 slices day-old French bread
1. Drain the soaked beans and put them in a large, earthenware pot or a flameproof casserole. Trim off as much of the layer of fat from the pork as possible and cut the lean meat into 1 1/4-inch cubes. Add cubes to the beans, then add water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to the boil slowly, skimming off scum that rises to the surface.
2. While the water is coming to the boil, dice the fat from the pork and cook over low heat to render the fat. Fry the turnip rounds in the fat until golden brown. When the bean water boils, add the turnips and any crisp pieces of fat, plus the carrots, celery, onion, parsley, thyme, bay leaf and peppercorns.
3. Allow water to return to the boil, lower heat, cover the pan and simmer for 1 hour. Add the potatoes and garlic. Continue cooking until beans and potatoes are tender. (The stew should be thick, but add hot water as necessary to keep vegetables covered.)
4. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, bring water to a boil. Add beet greens and cook for 10 to 12 minutes. Drain well, chop coarsely and add to stew. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Recipe may be done ahead to this point. Reheat before serving.)
5. To serve, place a slice of bread in each of 4 heated soup bowls and ladle the stew over them.
Note: For faster preparation, cook beans in 2 cups of water in a pressure cooker for 10 minutes at full pressure. Release steam, remove cover and add salt pork, all vegetables except the greens, all seasoning except the salt, and 1/2 cup water. Return to full pressure and cook 20 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare greens as in step 4. Release steam, remove cover, combine greens with stew, season, and serve.
-Adapted from ”Goose Fat and Garlic,” by Jeanne Strang
BILL`S RICE-AND-BEAN SPECIAL
Six to eight servings
2 cups Spanish talosano beans (9.5-ounce box) or pinto beans
2 dried red peppers
4 cups water or a mixture of ham or chicken broth and water
3 sprigs fresh thyme, plus 1/2 teaspoon minced thyme
2 bay leaves
1 cup rice
1 medium onion (about 8 ounces), chopped
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 1/2 cups cooked, chopped or sliced ham, ham-hock meat, leftover smoked pork, sausages or a combination of these items
1 cup (or less) cooked, cut-up spinach
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1. Beans may be cooked atop the stove in a large saucepan or pressure cooker. Rinse and pick over beans. Cover with water by 2 to 3 inches. Bring water slowly to the boil. Remove from heat, drain and rinse.
2. Return beans to pan. Cover with 2 to 3 inches of fresh water, add peppers, thyme sprigs and bay leaves (but no salt) and cook, covered, for about 20 minutes in a pressure cooker, 40 to 45 minutes in a saucepan or until boiling (8 to 10 minutes) in a microwave, then an additional 15 to 20 minutes at 50 percent power.
3. About 20 minutes before beans are done, prepare rice according to package directions.
4. About 10 minutes before beans are done, heat oil with onion in a large skillet. When onion is soft, add garlic, minced thyme, allspice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cook, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Add meats and optional vegetable and heat through.
5. Stir contents of skillet into cooked beans. Add vinegar and pepper, stir, taste and adjust seasoning as desired. (Use salt only after tasting to see how much salt flavor has been contributed by the ham.) If mixture seems dry, add some water or bouillon. Serve over rice with hot sauce and vinegar on the side.
