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madbakerThis week's Resolution Recipe: Corona Beans.
"Note that you can make the bulk of this recipe a few days ahead and spend about 30 minutes the day-of bringing everything together."
Beans:
1/2 lb dried corona beans, or similar (I used canellini)
1 large carrot, in 2" pieces
1 celery stalk, ditto
1 clove garlic (Ha! I used... more.)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp salt
Sauce:
1 1/2 cups canned diced San Marzano-type tomatoes (and their juice)
3/4 cup tomato paste (I used house-made)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp minced garlic (Come on people, you know the words.)
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne (I used 1/4 tsp chipotle powder)
Onions:
olive oil
2 white onions, thinly sliced
pinch salt
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
To finish:
4 oz dry-packed feta cheese, crumbled
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup dry panko breadcrumbs, lightly toasted
1 1/2 tsp oregano
To make the beans: cover beans with 2" water. Soak 8 hours or overnight.
Drain beans and put them in a large, heavy pot. Add the carrot, celery, garlic, and brown sugar. Add cold water to cover by 2". Put the pot over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer.
Cut a piece of parchment to cover the pot and brush with water to dampen - this will keep the edges from curling up and it will keep any beans that float to the top from drying out. (This wasn't needed for the canellini beans but I can see the need with the much larger corona beans.) Cover with the pot's lid and cook at 375 for 1-1 1/4 hours. Remove the beans from the oven, stir in the salt, and let them cool for 30 minutes. (The beans can be refrigerated for up to 3 days in their liquid.)
To make the sauce: Combine all the ingredients, along with 2 cups of water, in a large saucepan. Place over medium heat and simmer until the sauce is thick and reduced to about 2 1/2 cups. 50 minutes to 1 hour.
To make the onions: ("Any recipe that instructs that onions can caramelize properly in 15 minutes is lying - it's a solid 35 minutes over low heat. I'm sorry, but it's true.")
Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute, stirring very often, for about 10 minutes. Add the salt and continue to cook foranother 13 minutes 25 minutes or so until the onions are richly caramelized to a deep golden brown. Add the vinegar and scrape the pan to deglaze. Add the onions to the sauce. (At this point the sauce can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
To assemble the beans: Heat the oven to 400. Strain the beans,discarding the vegetables and cooking liquid saving the cooking liquid as a vegetable stock for future use, and gently stir the beans into the tomato-onion sauce. (If the beans are cold from making ahead, place them in a 2-quart saucepan and bring gently to a slow simmer over medium heat until hot.)
Spread the beans in a 6-cup gratin dish. Sprinkle the cheese in an even layer over the beans. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the beans are bubbling and the cheese is melted. Let rest for a couple minutes, then drizzle with olive oil. Mix the breadcrumbs and oregano and sprinkle over the top just before serving.
What worked: This was very good. Enough spice to be interesting and an excellent meatless entree for dinner. I made everything the day before, which made assembling for dinner relatively quick and easy.
What didn't: I didn't reheat the beans to a simmer before plopping in the oven, so it took longer than the 15 minutes and they still weren't quite hot enough. I cooked the beans for 75 minutes which may have been a bit too long for canellini (as opposed to much larger corona) as they disintegrated slightly.
It is much too long to type up on a 3x5 recipe card for my recipe box, so I am not quite sure how I will document this. Maybe the sauce on one and the beans/assembly on another?
Will I make it again? This will go into the rotation.
"Note that you can make the bulk of this recipe a few days ahead and spend about 30 minutes the day-of bringing everything together."
Beans:
1/2 lb dried corona beans, or similar (I used canellini)
1 large carrot, in 2" pieces
1 celery stalk, ditto
1 clove garlic (Ha! I used... more.)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp salt
Sauce:
1 1/2 cups canned diced San Marzano-type tomatoes (and their juice)
3/4 cup tomato paste (I used house-made)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp minced garlic (Come on people, you know the words.)
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne (I used 1/4 tsp chipotle powder)
Onions:
olive oil
2 white onions, thinly sliced
pinch salt
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
To finish:
4 oz dry-packed feta cheese, crumbled
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup dry panko breadcrumbs, lightly toasted
1 1/2 tsp oregano
To make the beans: cover beans with 2" water. Soak 8 hours or overnight.
Drain beans and put them in a large, heavy pot. Add the carrot, celery, garlic, and brown sugar. Add cold water to cover by 2". Put the pot over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer.
Cut a piece of parchment to cover the pot and brush with water to dampen - this will keep the edges from curling up and it will keep any beans that float to the top from drying out. (This wasn't needed for the canellini beans but I can see the need with the much larger corona beans.) Cover with the pot's lid and cook at 375 for 1-1 1/4 hours. Remove the beans from the oven, stir in the salt, and let them cool for 30 minutes. (The beans can be refrigerated for up to 3 days in their liquid.)
To make the sauce: Combine all the ingredients, along with 2 cups of water, in a large saucepan. Place over medium heat and simmer until the sauce is thick and reduced to about 2 1/2 cups. 50 minutes to 1 hour.
To make the onions: ("Any recipe that instructs that onions can caramelize properly in 15 minutes is lying - it's a solid 35 minutes over low heat. I'm sorry, but it's true.")
Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute, stirring very often, for about 10 minutes. Add the salt and continue to cook for
To assemble the beans: Heat the oven to 400. Strain the beans,
Spread the beans in a 6-cup gratin dish. Sprinkle the cheese in an even layer over the beans. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the beans are bubbling and the cheese is melted. Let rest for a couple minutes, then drizzle with olive oil. Mix the breadcrumbs and oregano and sprinkle over the top just before serving.
What worked: This was very good. Enough spice to be interesting and an excellent meatless entree for dinner. I made everything the day before, which made assembling for dinner relatively quick and easy.
What didn't: I didn't reheat the beans to a simmer before plopping in the oven, so it took longer than the 15 minutes and they still weren't quite hot enough. I cooked the beans for 75 minutes which may have been a bit too long for canellini (as opposed to much larger corona) as they disintegrated slightly.
It is much too long to type up on a 3x5 recipe card for my recipe box, so I am not quite sure how I will document this. Maybe the sauce on one and the beans/assembly on another?
Will I make it again? This will go into the rotation.
