Baked gigante beans with feta and tomatoes
Anyone out there who might think that a “meatless” meal wouldn’t satisfy them, hasn’t had giant white beans for dinner. This meal is full of fiber, protein, and delicious sweetness from the roasted tomatoes.
Gigante beans, lima beans, large white beans, whatever you want to call them, these beans make a meal in a way that other legumes don’t always cut it for me.
I’ve only ever seen these beans in dry form, so while I’m averse to most extra work in the kitchen, I don’t see a way around cooking them yourself if you want to use these big guys.
Which leads us to the age old question: Do you really need to soak dried beans? Some will insist that you do. I say, LAZY COOKS UNITE! I have a preschooler and don’t always have that much foresight.
But here’s one caveat: Sans soaking, the simmering times vary WILDLY for these beans. One batch I made from Brand A were ready after about 90 minutes.. Brand B took almost twice as long. And while everyone advises “look for fresh beans,” if you could seriously show me a bag of beans with an expiration date on it, I would give you a million dollars.
So, here are some handy tutorials that you can peruse and decide if you’re team soak or team no soak:
If I was the meal prepping type I’d suggest making a whole bag of these beans one weekend and freezing them for easy weeknight meals. Because once you cook the beans, this meal could not be easier or faster.
Roasting makes the tomatoes syrupy sweet, the cheese just a little soft and gooey, and the bean skins crispy in a way that is completely satisfying.
A few notes:
I salt the bean cooking water and then don’t add any more salt until serving the beans. They soak up the sodium during cooking, so it’s very easy to over salt this dish. Also, feta is a salt bomb, so we’ve found that the end product needs no extra seasoning.
I’ve billed this as a meatless meal, but it could also serve as a side or appetizer just as easily.
Do NOT skip the lemon zest in the end. The citrus brightens up the beans and adds a layer of flavor without which, the beans could taste a bit flat.
I prefer to use a combo of both dried and fresh oregano, but use what you have on hand.
Baked feta with gigante beans and tomatoes
Active time: about 20 minutes, on and off
Total time: 90-150 for the beans, 25-30 for the main dish
Yield: 4 dinner servings,
For the beans:
1½ cups dried giant white beans, rinsed
4 cups vegetable stock
1-2 cups water (as needed)
½ tsp sea salt
1-2 bay leaves
4 medium cloves garlic, peeled, but left whole
Yield: 3 heaping cups of cooked beans
Combine the beans, stock, salt, bay leaf, and garlic cloves in a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce flame to low and simmer, covered, for anywhere from 1 1/2 hours to 2 1/2 hours (90-150 minutes), stirring occasionally, until the beans are creamy and soft, but not falling apart and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
Check the beans after 60 minutes and then every 15-30 minutes after that (depending on how your beans are progressing) until the beans are tender throughout. Add more liquid if the water boils off before the beans are fully cooked.
Drain any remaining liquid from the beans and remove the bay leaves.
For the main dish:
1/2 cup olive oil, divided
½ tsp Aleppo pepper (optional)
1 tsp dried oregano or 1 Tbsp fresh oregano (or a combination of both dried for cooking and fresh for topping)
½ tsp smoked paprika
2-3 cups cherry tomatoes, whole (about 8-12 oz)
Small block Feta cheese (8 oz)
½ tsp lemon zest (zest of one small lemon)
Preheat oven to 400.
In a bowl or the pot you used to simmer the beans, add 1/4 cup of olive oil, Aleppo pepper, oregano, paprika, and tomatoes to the beans and mix well.
In a 9x13 baking pan (or whatever size you have), spread out the bean and tomato mixture. Clear a hole in the middle and add the feta.
Cook for 20-23 minutes, until the feta is soft and the tomatoes have released their juices AND those juices have become a little syrupy.
Remove from the heat and top with the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil, lemon zest, fresh oregano (if using), and sprinkling of flaky sea salt (if needed).
Roasted strawberry and rhubarb butter
Roughly chop some fruit and toss it in the oven for a spring-y fruit butter that’s naturally sweet, SUPER EASY, and extremely versatile. #meandthemoose #strawberryrhubarb #fruit #fruitbutter #naturallysweet #jam
Rhubarb season is here! Turn this tart veg into a thick, spreadable butter to use all day, every day.
Roughly chop some fruit and toss it in the oven for a spring-y fruit butter that’s naturally sweet, SUPER EASY, and extremely versatile. #meandthemoose #strawberryrhubarb #fruit #fruitbutter #naturallysweet #jam
Roughly chop some fruit and toss it in the oven for a spring-y fruit butter that’s naturally sweet, SUPER EASY, and extremely versatile. #meandthemoose #strawberryrhubarb #fruit #fruitbutter #naturallysweet #jam
If you’ve searched Instagram recently, it’ll come as no surprise that rhubarb is a very photogenic vegetable. The variations in color lend themselves to ombre-ing and chevron-ing to your heart’s content. But today, we’re keeping it simple by doing neither of those things.
Instead, we’re turning strawberries (fresh or frozen!) and those giant rhubarb stalks you find in the grocery store (or your garden if you’re lucky enough to grow your own) into a butter akin to apple or pumpkin. Because why should fall fruits and vegetables have all the fun?
In early spring, I use frozen berries because it annoys me that strawberry and rhubarb are a perfect combination, but their growing seasons only overlap for a hot minute here in New England. Buuuuut, I found some giant berries in the grocery store recently, so I went for it with the fresh ones a little earlier this year.
Roughly chop some fruit and toss it in the oven for a spring-y fruit butter that’s naturally sweet, SUPER EASY, and extremely versatile. #meandthemoose #strawberryrhubarb #fruit #fruitbutter #naturallysweet #jam
A couple of notes:
Let the berries and rhubarb cook until the juices start to get a little syrupy. You can test this by sticking a spoon into the hot liquid (DON’T USE YOUR FINGER!!!). If the strawberry juice coats the back of the spoon and doesn’t drip off entirely, you’re about done. Make sure that your berries don’t burn because they can taste bitter.
This is a TART butter because, well, rhubarb is tart and that’s the beauty of it. If you like things a little sweeter, you can add a bit of sugar or use more berries than rhubarb. OR, you can combine the tart butter with sweeter things like cakes, cookies, sweetened yogurt, and whipped cream.
Roughly chop some fruit and toss it in the oven for a spring-y fruit butter that’s naturally sweet, SUPER EASY, and extremely versatile. #meandthemoose #strawberryrhubarb #fruit #fruitbutter #naturallysweet #jam
Roughly chop some fruit and toss it in the oven for a spring-y fruit butter that’s naturally sweet, SUPER EASY, and extremely versatile. #meandthemoose #strawberryrhubarb #fruit #fruitbutter #naturallysweet #jam
Roasted strawberry rhubarb butter
Time: About 1 hour, 45 minutes, about 5 minutes active time
Yield: 12 oz (1½-2 cups)
4 heaping cups strawberries (fresh or frozen)
2 heaping cups chopped fresh rhubarb (about 3 extra extra-large stalks or 6-8 smaller stalks, chopped into 1-inch chunks)
Preheat the oven to 350.
Wash and chop the rhubarb. Combine with the frozen strawberries on a parchment-lined, rimmed baking tray.
Cook for 25-30 minutes, until the fruit is soft, the strawberries have released their juices, and the juice has started to become syrupy (see note above). Watch the berries closely after about 20 minutes to ensure that they don’t burn.
Let the fruit cool completely, about 15 minutes.
Scoop the fruit into your blender. Whatever juice gets onto the spoon is fine, but don’t add any remaining syrup.
Blend until smooth.
Store in the fridge for up to 7 days.
Rainbow Chard Galette
This Rainbow Chard Galette is so good (I mean, there’s cheese and puff pastry, what’s not to love) and a serious show stopper for your Easter feast (or any day, really).
OVENS, amiright? It recently occurred to me that the real secret to successful baking is knowing your oven well. I mean, measuring and experience and bringing things to room temperature and patience are also important, but seriously, if you know that your oven runs hot or cool or that it has uneven spots, you can really up your baking game.
As you can tell, I’m still adjusting to our oven even though we’ve lived in our current house for almost two years.
Luckily, I’ve found that store-bought puff pastry is fairly forgiving. As long as your filling isn’t too wet and the oven is at least 400 degrees, you’re pretty safe.
Which makes this easy galette a reliable option for your holiday table.
A couple of notes:
I like to rip the greens off of the stems and then arrange the stems in a way that flexes my OCD muscles. HOWEVER, you can opt to chop everything together to save time and that’s perfectly acceptable.
Roasting garlic makes the flavor mellow and mild, which I like here because it lets the chard sing. But if you like a stronger garlic flavor, chop the cloves and saute them with the spring onions and greens instead of roasting. Or you can do half and half.
This galette really needs salt. I salt at the beginning and end of wilting the greens and then finish with some more salt. I like salt. If you don’t, I urge you to salt at the beginning and end of wilting (and taste test to make sure it’s not too much) and then skip the final salting rather than waiting to add salt at the end.
Rainbow chard galette
Time: 50-60 minutes (about 30 minutes active time, depending on how intense you get about arranging the chard stems)
Yield: 9 medium pieces
4 large garlic cloves
2 Tbsp olive oil + more for roasting the garlic (about ½ cup)
2 large spring onions (white/purple and green parts), chopped (about 1 heaping cup) sub scallions if necessary
10 cups chard leaves, measured after chopping, lightly packed (about 2 medium bundles)
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp kosher salt (a few big pinches)
A few cracks of black pepper
1 cup ricotta
3/4 cup nutty cheese like gruyere or aged Gouda, shredded
1 puff pastry sheet
1 Tbsp roasted garlic oil (from earlier roasted garlic)
1 egg, whisked
Preheat oven to 425.
Smash four garlic cloves (no need to remove the skin) and place in an oven-safe ramekin. Add enough olive oil to cover the garlic. Cook in the oven for 6-8 minutes, or until you start to smell garlic and the cloves are fork tender.
Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in a very large skillet. Add the spring onions and sauté until translucent and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Add the greens and a large pinch of salt. Cook until wilted, about 8-10 minutes.
Add the balsamic vinegar, another large pinch of salt, and a few cracks of fresh black pepper and stir a few times.
Once wilted, place the onions and greens into a large bowl. Add the cheeses and roasted garlic. Mix well.
On a floured surface, roll out the puff pastry dough to a thickness of 1/8th to 1/16th of an inch (about 1/3 bigger than original packaging). Move the dough to your sheet pan.
Spread the greens and cheese on the puff pastry, leaving a 1-inch frame. Fold the bare edges over onto the greens and cheese mixture.
Arrange the chard stems in your desired pattern.
Brush the chard stems with 1 Tbsp roasted garlic oil.
Brush the lightly beaten egg over the visible parts of the pastry crust.
Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the bottom and the edges are golden brown.
