A happy conclusion to the Bean Project...

…and *finally* the Gigantes!

Do you love a story with a happy ending? Well, folks, great news, I finally got those Greek beans right! (I know you’ve been waiting on the edge of your seats for the conclusion of the bean saga…)

Just for a reminder, back here a couple of months ago, I wrote an entire newsletter on trying to “copy cat” a dish from a Greek restaurant outside of Chicago, thinking it would be an easy task, when in fact - It. Was. Not.

Many tests ensued, the frustrations abounded, the beans were never quite right, but still I persisted.

And now, I am thrilled to report that the beans and I have reached a truce, and I am very happy with the result.

When we left off, I was struggling with both flavor and texture. I desperately wanted the beans to be lighter and brighter than my previous tests. I needed the beans to be creamy, yet hold their shape. And every dried “large lima bean” I tried was giving off a very unpleasant bitterness.

Now for the happy ending, which goes something like this -

Dad ordered some actual Gigantes (Greek lima beans) online to try. I got the flavor profile of the tomato sauce right (yay!) and then overcooked the beans (boo). So then I used the updated vibrant tomato sauce and went back to a couple of cans of butter beans. It worked beautifully, and finally I had what I wanted!

But what about the dried beans, could I make them work also? Lucky for me, I have a friend who surprised me with another bag of beans (get you a friend who feeds your food obsessions!), and it turns out when you don’t over cook them, they are perfect in this dish.

So, (drum roll please), here we have it - Gigantes (Greek Lima Beans) in Tomato Sauce - recipe below! A light tomato sauce with a splash of vinegar and lots of fresh herbs is the back drop for these huge, creamy white beans. The contrast between the zesty sauce and the smooth, buttery beans is a match made in bean heaven. They can be served as a warm appetizer (mezze) with slices of toasted bread and a drizzle of olive oil, or as a vegan main dish with a simple salad on the side. (Or eaten straight from the tupperware in the fridge - no judgements here.)

The recipe is written for the easier use of the canned beans, but the notes include the how-to for the dried Gigantes if you want to go that route. You can’t go wrong either way. I might use the canned butter beans for a quick lunch, but the authentic Greek dried beans for a dinner project.

In conclusion, and very, very long story short - here’s a recipe for beans. I hope you like them. It took me a while to get it right.

Ok - there’s no meal plan this week. It’s fine. I’m fine.

So, we’re on Spring Break this week. We’ll be taking a couple of days to travel and then spending the rest of the week on a “stay-cation”. Which means I’m giving myself the week off. A couple of times a year, I take a whole week with no plans, and this is one of them. Maybe I’m trying to prove to other people that I can do it, or maybe I’m testing my own proclamation of “I can be flexible”. Either way, here we are. And, by next week, I’ll be so ready for a plan. (I might already be writing down ideas because I just can’t not think about food.)

For this week, after we get back from our short trip, we have a birthday to celebrate as the Kiddo turns 14 (!!!), so it’s birthday dinner at the Hibachi place one night, then we’re playing the “draw the name of a restaurant we’ve never been to” game. It’s always fun, and gets us away from our usual take-out spots. If we want a night back cooking at home, I’ll get creative and cook with whatever ingredients we already have on hand. Another fun game. (But seriously, there are so many boxes of dried pasta in the pantry, we can make do.)

Regular meal plan back next week!

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Gigantes (Greek Lima Beans) in Tomato Sauce

­­­­­­­­­­­Makes about 8 servings as an appetizer, or 4-6 servings as a main dish

· 2 tablespoons Olive Oil

· 1 medium Shallot, diced (should be about ¼ cup)

· Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes

· ½ teaspoon Tomato Paste

· 1 can (14 ounce) Petite Diced Tomatoes, undrained

· 1 tablespoon fresh minced Rosemary Leaves

· 1 tablespoon fresh minced Thyme Leaves

· 1 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar

· ½ teaspoon kosher Salt (Morton or other store brand)

· Pinch ground Black Pepper (or a few grinds of a pepper mill)

· 2 cans Butter Beans, drained but not rinsed

For serving

· Extra drizzle of Olive Oil

· Extra herbs

· Good bread, toasted

In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add diced shallots and cook for 4-5 minutes, until cooked through and soft, but not brown.

Stir in red pepper flakes and tomato paste. Cook for another minute, stirring in the paste until well combined.

Add diced tomatoes and their juices, rosemary, thyme, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in beans, cook another 10 minutes.

Serve from the skillet or transfer to another dish. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkle with any extra herbs you have. Spoon over toasted bread (or use the bread as your spoon!)

For toasts – drizzle thick slices of sourdough or other rustic style bread with olive oil and toast in a 400-degree oven for about 10 minutes.

NOTE – You can purchase authentic dried Gigante Beans at some specialty stores or online. If you want to go this route, soak about 2/3 of a pound of the dried beans in a big bowl full of cold water overnight. Drain and rinse. In a large soup pot, bring 3-4 quarts water and beans to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about an hour and a half. Add a couple teaspoons of salt in the last 30 minutes of cooking time. After about an hour and 15 minutes, I just pull out a bean or two and eat them to determine if they are done. They should be soft and creamy in texture. If they’re not done yet, keep cooking and test again. When the beans are done, drain them and set aside. Proceed to cook the dish as the directed above, using your cooked beans in place of the canned. Using the dried beans can yield a little creamier texture in the final dish as some of the beans break down during cooking.

The actual Gigantes from online.

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That’s all for now, thanks for reading! See you back here next week!

(Don’t forget you can see all of the past newsletters and recipes at the archive link below!)

All recipes categorized by type can be found in the index!