Mexican White Bean & Roasted Tomato Salad

If you like roasted tomatoes and bean you will love this salad. Serve it as the main dinner dish or as a side dish. It will serve 4 as the main dish or 8 as a side dish

• Ready In: 1 hr 25 mins
• Serves: 4-8

Ingredients

• 1  large red onion, cut into 3/4 inch chunks
• 2 1⁄2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2  tablespoons  balsamic vinegar
• 14  firm roma tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
•  salt
• 3 (15 ounce) cans canned cannellini (white beans)
• 2  tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped (fresh is best) or 2  teaspoons dried thyme (fresh is best)
• 2  tablespoons fresh basil, chopped or 2  teaspoons dried basil
•  pepper

Directions

1. Lightly oil a 10-inch square oven-proof pan and put in the onion, 1/2 tsp oil and 1/2 tsp vinegar.
2. Arrange the tomatoes, cut side up, on a 9x13-inch lightly oiled baking sheet, rub tomatoes with the remaining oil and salt well (or eliminate the salt to your liking).
3. Heat oven to 475°F and bake the onions for about 40 minutes and the tomatoes for about 1 hour.
4. Switch positions of the pans halfway through the baking.
5. Pour beans and their liquid into a saucepan add thyme, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 3-4 minutes, stir.
6. Strain the beans over a bowl and reserve the liquid.
7. Place beans in a serving bowl and tap all the herbs from the strainer onto the beans.
8. Chop 8 tomato halves and stir into the beans along with the fresh basil and onions.
9. Moisten with a bit of the reserved bean water if you wish, season to taste with salt and pepper.
10. Arrange the remaining tomato halves around the edge of the salad in the serving bowl.
11. Serve warm or at room temperature.
12. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the salad and then serve.