Butter Beans and Braised Leeks

Submitted by BeckyF

"Butter beans tend to be a little bland so don't be afraid to season well. This can be served over steamed rice of chilled as a salad."

 

• Ready In: 50mins
• Ingredients: 13
• Yields: 4 Appetizers
• Serves: 2

ingredients

• 1 cup dried butter beans
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, peeled and minced
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 medium bay leaf
• 6 cardamom pods, hulled and crushed
• 2 large leeks, thoroughly rinsed and white portions sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
• 1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 medium tomatoes, peeled,cored,seeded and diced
• 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar (malt vinegar or apple cider vinegar may be substituted)
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper

directions

1. Place the butter beans in a heavy saucepan and cover with cold water.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer, and cook,covered (with the lid cracked), until the beans are tender, about 1 hour.
3. Drain and cool.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
5. Add the onions and garlic and saute, stirring constantly, until soft, about 5 minutes.
6. Add bay leaf and cardamom and cook for 1 minute.
7. Add the leek rounds and carrot, reduce the heat, and saute, covered, for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
8. Add the wine and tomatoes, bring to a simmer, then add the beans and cook for 5 minutes, uncovered, stirring constantly.
9. Add the vinegar, salt and pepper, stir well, and remove from the heat.

Reviews

[kmschaefer]

Tasty. I needed a leek for another recipe and because they were sold in bundles of three, I ended up with two huge leeks that I needed to use for something else. I love butter beans and I also had a couple of tomatoes that were about to turn so this recipe was perfect. I had to use ground cardamom, and I think I might use more next time. The equivalents chart I found said 1/2 tsp = 10 pods, so I used a heaping 1/4 tsp, Next time, I might go for a scant 1/2. I already increased the garlic by one and probably could have gone with four cloves. I also was not sure how much to let the broth cook down, and think I should have let more of the wine cook off or maybe used less vinegar because the apple cider vinegar I had on hand was a bit too sweet. Overall, however, this was a delicious and healthy option for leeks.

 

[Kumquat the Cats fr]

This was delicious. Sort of like butter beans provencale I thought. To cut back on the calories I used less oil. Instead of cardamom pods I used a quarter teaspoon of dried which I had on hand. This was a very healthful recipe, with lots of vitamin A and C and fiber. Just the right amount of vinegar too (I used cider vinegar). We didn't have any leftovers so I couldn't try it cold. Next time I might double the recipe. Thanks!