Celery Root Soup With Chard, Beans And Corn Chicos

5-6 oz. Rattlesnake beans
1/4 cup corn chicos
1 small boneless smoked ham (or a large ham hock)

Place the beans, corn, and ham in a large enameled cast iron pot (Staub 5 quart) and add 4-6 cups water. Place in a 225ºF oven and cook for 1 hour, reduce the heat to 200ºF and continue to cook until the beans are tender but not falling apart, maybe 2 to 3 hours, check every hour. The beans may take longer or shorter to cook, it depends on how old they are. Turn the ham over once or twice during the cooking process. When the beans are done remove the ham and set a side to cool. Reserve the beans, corn, and broth.

Olive oil
1 large leek, split lengthwise and cut crosswise into slices
2 large sprigs fresh rosemary, minced
About 16 sage leaves (2 large sprigs), thinly slivered
9 ounces chard, stems removed and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices, leaves chopped
2 stalks celery, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
2 lb. celery root, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Chicken stock
Tomato paste
Fermented dried Jarales peppers, pulp scraped from the skin, mashed, and reserved (toss the skins)

Warm some olive oil (1-2 Tbsp) in a large pot and sauté the leek until softened. Stir in the rosemary and sage, add the chard stems and celery and continue to cook until slightly softened. Drain the broth from the beans and corn, add the broth to the pot and set aside the beans and corn. Add the celery root and fish sauce to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cook until the celery root is nearly tender but still firm. Meanwhile dilute the tomato paste and pepper pulp in a cup of chicken stock. When the celery root is nearly tender add the chard leaves, beans, and corn to the pot and add the tomato paste mixture and more chicken stock to generously cover all the vegetables. Bring back to a simmer and cook until the chard leaves are wilted and tender. Chop the ham into 1/2-inch or so cubes and add it to the pot, simmer to heat through. Taste for salt and add more if desired.

Serve with a spoonful of your best extra virgin olive oil.

A Stew of Beans, Pork Sausage, Zucchini, Tomatillo, and Green Chile

This came together as a result of raiding my pantry and freezer. I had tomatillos that had been roasted until soft and then frozen. There was a frozen packet of green Anaheim peppers that I had roasted, peeled, and seeded. The pork sausage was from the freezer also. Beans were from the pantry and dehydrated sliced zucchini from the refrigerator. I started the beans in the morning using what has become my favorite slow cook method. The slow method works magic with old beans. My 3 year old Petaluma Gold Rush beans took about 6 hours, fresher beans will cook more quickly and different varieties cook at different rates.

For the beans:

8 ounces Petaluma Gold Rush beans
1 quart water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 inch piece dried kombu kelp (supposedly has enzymes that make the beans more digestible)

Combine the beans, water, salt, and kelp in a lidded heavy 2 to 3 quart casserole (such as a Staub cocotte). Place in the oven and turn it on to 250ºF and bake for 1 hour. Turn the heat down to 220ºF and continue to cook until the beans are tender but not falling apart. Check on the beans every hour and then more often when they start to soften. Don't let them boil.

When the beans are done remove them from the oven, remove the lid and allow them to cool in their broth. They can be done ahead and refrigerated overnight in their broth. Remove the kelp or not, after 6 hours it will be falling apart and will just disappear into the sauce of the finished dish without leaving a noticeable flavor.

For the stew:

1 ounce dehydrated sliced zucchini
1 pound bulk pork sausage or ground pork
Olive oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
A pinch of ground cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon Oregano Indio
1 teaspoon dried fermented Aji Amarillo Grande pepper flakes
About 2 cups roasted tomatillos
About 8 ounces roasted and peeled green Anaheim peppers, coarsely chopped
About 2 teaspoons or more piloncillo sugar (or brown sugar) or to taste
Creme fraiche and grated cheese to serve

Place the zucchini in a bowl and add enough of the bean broth to cover generously. Set aside and allow it to soak. This can be done a few hours in advance but that long is not necessary.

Heat a large enameled cast iron casserole over medium heat. Break up the sausage with your hands and add it to the casserole with a splash of olive oil and cook until browned, breaking it up more with a wooden spatula as it cooks. Turn the heat up near the end to cook off most of the juices. Drain the cooked sausage, reserving the fat, and set the sausage aside. Return the fat to the casserole and add more olive oil and heat it over medium heat. Saute the garlic briefly and then add the onion, continue to cook until the onion is translucent. Add the cumin, cinnamon, Oregano Indio, and pepper flakes to the casserole and stir a minute or so. Add the tomatillos and break them up with a potato masher. Add the peppers, the zucchini with their soaking liquid, and the pork. Bring to a simmer, cover the casserole, and cook until the zucchini is just al dente. Add the beans with their remaining broth and the sugar. Bring back to a simmer and heat through. Taste for sugar and salt.

Serve with a dollop of creme fraiche and a sprinkling of grated cheese, I used Carmody but a jack cheese would be nice too.

Made about 6 to 8 servings.

Beans and Greens 2.0

These days I'm eating very little bread so I've had to come up with a new way to combine my beans and greens. So here's a stab at one of my favorite combos. Rather than cooking the beans with some bacon, mashing it up, spreading it on some garlic toast and adding a pile of cooked greens on top, the dish has morphed into something more, hmmm, not quite soupy, sort of a braise.

No particular quantities because I was just experimenting and not keeping track, and this type of dish doesn't require precise measurements anyway.

• 4 thick slices of pancetta, cut up
• olive oil for sauteing
• 2 small stalks of green garlic, chopped
• firm cooked dried beans (a combo of leftover Gigantes and chickpeas), about 1 1/2 cups or so
• fresh washed spinach, drained but not spun dry, no need to cut up unless the leaves are absolutely huge
• about 1 cup of chicken stock
• fresh ground black pepper
• your best extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Saute the pancetta in about 1 tablespoon of olive oil until it starts to become crisp. Add the chopped garlic to the pan and stir to mix in. Add the beans to the pan and saute for a few minutes to evaporate any excess moisture. Turn the heat down and continue to saute the beans slowly until they start to brown a bit. Pile the fresh spinach leaves into the pan (it was probably about 1/2 lb of leaves) and pour in the chicken stock. Cover the pan and turn the heat to high. When the stock has started to boil turn the heat down again and toss the leaves with some tongs a few times until they have all wilted. Salt is probably not necessary because pancetta is usually pretty salty and perhaps your chicken stock is as well, taste first before reaching for the salt. Don't overcook the spinach, it should just be wilted! Serve immediately in warmed soup bowls with a generous grind of fresh black pepper and a good drizzle of flavorful extra virgin olive oil.

Made 2 main course portions.

A Version of "Beans and Greens"

Beans and Greens is a dish that we have fairly often during the winter when most of what comes out of the garden is some sort of greens, usually kale, chard, spinach, sprouting broccoli with its leaves, or rapini. I do a number of variations on the theme, sometime with mashed beans on garlic bread with greens piled on top, or as in this version, with the beans left whole and mixed with the greens and piled on garlic toast. The flavorings also vary a lot, sometimes enhanced with something meaty like bacon, other times meatless but with a generous amount of garlic and/or onion, perhaps spiced up with chile peppers, or anchovies, or pine nuts... the options are endless.

4 slices thick cut bacon, cut onto 1/4-inch pieces
about 1 lb. fresh spinach
about 1 cup or so of cooked beans (Mayacoba from Rancho Gordo this time)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Toasted rustic whole wheat bread scraped with fresh garlic and drizzled with your favorite extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

Cook the bacon in a large saute pan over medium heat until it starts to crisp. Add the spinach in handfuls, tossing to wilt it, adding more as it cooks down. Once it is all wilted, add the beans, continue to cook over high heat until most of the excess moisture cooks off and the beans are heated through. Pile the greens and beans on the toasted bread, grind fresh black pepper over all, drizzle with some of your best EVOO and serve.

Serves 2 as a main course.

Lentils with Sausage, Onions, and Spigariello Broccoli

1 cup lentils that stay intact when cooked,
--- such as du Puy, Pardina, or Norcia
3 cups water
3 smoked sausages, about 9 to 10 ounces
--- I used venison andouille
3 fresh thyme sprigs
1 fresh bay leaf
1 pound sweet onions, quartered and sliced 1/4-inch thick
1/2 cup or more olive oil
--- (don't panic, it doesn't all end up in the dish!)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch spigariello broccoli, about 1/2 pound,
--- tough stems removed, tender parts, including leaves,
--- chopped into about 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses or concentrate
--- or about 1/2 tablespoon good balsamico

Sort through the lentils to remove any stones or other debris, rinse them and put them in a medium sauce pan. Add the water, sausages, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, turn the heat low and simmer, partially covered, until the lentils are tender but not falling apart. This could take from 20 minutes to more than 40 minutes, depending on how old the lentils are. There should be very little liquid left when the lentils are done, it may be necessary to add more water if they take a long time to cook. When the lentils are nearly done, remove the sausages and set aside until cool enough to handle, then slice the sausages about 1/4-inch thick. Remove the thyme stems and bay leaves when the lentils are done.

While the lentils are cooking, put the onions in a medium sized skillet with the olive oil and fry the onions over medium to medium low heat (you may have to turn the heat down as the onions start to brown), until the onions are golden. Drain the onions through a metal sieve, saving the olive oil.

Return the skillet to the heat with a tablespoon or two of the onion flavored oil (reserve the remaining oil to saute something else that would taste good with the onion flavor, like potatoes). Add the garlic and saute briefly, don't allow it to brown. Add the chopped broccoli to the skillet and toss to coat with the oil, add a few tablespoons of liquid (lentil cooking liquid if there's enough) and cover the pan and braise the broccoli over low heat to whatever degree of tenderness you like, most of the liquid should be gone.

Add the sliced sausage, drained onion, and braised broccoli to the lentils, drizzle in the pomegranate molasses and stir everything together. Taste for salt, it may not be needed if the sausage is salty. Serve warm.

Makes about 4 servings.

Bean Soup with Spigariello Broccoli

1/2 pound dried beans, presoaked
1/2 pound Spigariello Broccoli shoots
1 ounce guanciale or bacon, finely diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 very large carrot, peeled and diced
1/2 very large sweet onion, diced
1 tablespoon (about) minced fresh rosemary
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup diced oven roasted cherry tomatoes, or sundried tomatoes
1/2 pound ham, diced
a drizzle of vinegar
fresh ground pepper to taste

Put the presoaked beans into a large pot with 6 cups water. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down and simmer, partly covered.

While the beans are cooking prepare the Spigariello broccoli. Remove the largest bottom leaves from the broccoli shoots, trim off the leaf stems and discard, coarsely chop the leaves. Cut off and discard any tough bottoms from the shoots (if the stalks are large enough you can peel off the tough skin and use the tender inner parts). Cut the shoots crosswise into pieces. Add the chopped broccoli to the beans and continue to simmer, partly covered.

Put the guanciale or bacon in a medium skillet over medium low heat. Saute the guanciale or bacon until crisp. Add the carrot, onion, and rosemary to the skillet, turn the heat up a bit and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables start to brown. Remove the skillet from the heat, stir in the minced garlic and chopped tomatoes and set aside.

When the beans are nearly tender (the amount of time to this stage will vary depending on the age of the beans - the older they are the longer it takes), stir in the sauteed vegetable mixture (sofrito) and diced ham; continue to cook the soup until the beans are fully tender but not falling apart. Taste for salt (I added none because of the saltiness of the guanciale and ham), add a splash of vinegar (amazing how a touch of vinegar can brighten the flavor), and grind in some fresh black pepper.

Serves at least 4.

Bean and Sausage Soup with Portuguese Cabbage

1 1/2 cups dry Runner Cannellini beans, presoaked
1 smoked ham hock
3 Dittmer’s Venison Andouille sausages, about 9 to 10 ounces
2 8-inch stalks of celery
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced in half lengthwise
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered through the root end
2 1/2 quarts cold water (part poultry stock)
3 medium new potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 large leaves portuguese cabbage, stems removed and cut into 1/4-inch by 2-inch shreds, about 6 loose cups
Salt and pepper to taste
Best quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Put the presoaked beans, ham hock, whole sausages, celery, carrots, onion wedges, and water into a stock pot. Bring to a boil and then turn down and simmer, partly covered, for an hour.

Remove the ham hock and sausages and set aside to cool. Remove and discard the vegetables (they are meant to just flavor the broth). Continue to simmer the beans until they are quite tender but not falling apart – this could take up to an hour longer. If you’re in a rush and the beans are still quite crunchy you can transfer them with half of the broth to a pressure cooker and cook under high pressure for 10 minutes and quick release the pressure. Transfer the beans and broth from the pressure cooker back to the stock pot. Remove the meat from the ham hock and cut into 1/2-inch dice. Slice the sausages into 1/4-inch slices.

When the beans are tender, add the cubed potatoes and shredded cabbage to the pot. Simmer about 15 minutes longer, or until the potatoes are tender but not falling apart. Add the ham and sausage to the pot and simmer a few minutes more. Season the soup with salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste.

Serve with a generous drizzle of your best extra virgin olive oil in each bowl.

Cavolo Nero and Chickpea Soup

1/2 pound dried chickpeas, presoaked
2 small true bay leaves
2 small branches fresh thyme
2 1/2 ounces guanciale or pancetta or bacon, cut into lardons
olive oil as needed
1 large sweet onion, chopped
2 or more cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound fresh tomatoes, peeled and pureed or about 2 cups tomato puree
1 pound Cavolo Nero kale, ribs removed and torn into bite size pieces
1 or more cups of diced roasted chicken (or leftover meat or poultry of your choice)
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil for drizzling

In a 5 quart pressure cooker, add water to cover the presoaked chickpeas by at least 2 inches. Add the bay leaves and whole thyme branches to the pot. Cover and bring up to high pressure, adjust the heat to maintain pressure and cook for 10 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally (let it sit off the heat).

While the chickpeas are cooking, saute the tasty salted pig parts in some olive oil over medium heat until they start to crisp. Add the onion and garlic and continue to cook until the onion is translucent. Add the tomato puree and cook a few minutes more. Add the kale and toss. Remove from the heat and set aside.

The chickpeas should be nearly tender, if not cook some more, under pressure a few more minutes or cover the cooker with the lid not locked in place. If the beans are old it may take much longer. For the next step the beans should be nearly tender but not falling apart.

Add the contents of the saute pan to the cooker, stir it in and add enough water to cover everthing generously but not so much that you can't bring the cooker up to pressure again. (I used at least 2 quarts of water in total but didn't measure so I can't specify). Lock lid in place and bring up to high pressure again, adjust the heat to maintain pressure and cook another 5 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally. The chickpeas should now be falling apart tender and the kale quite tender as well. Use a potato masher to mash the chickpeas to a chunky puree right in the cooker. Stir in the diced chicken. Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a generous drizzle of your favorite olive oil (I used McEvoy's Olio Nuovo).

Bean Salad With Czech Black Chile Dressing

I set about making a salad with the last of my Ojo de Cabra beans from Rancho Gordo. I put a couple of whole dried Czech Blacks into the bean cooking pot. The pot liquor didn't pick up much chile flavor though. But, I still didn't give up on them. The pods had softened but not split or fallen apart so I removed the stems, cut the pods open, removed the seeds, and then scraped the softened flesh from the skins. Then I pureed the flesh with some sherry vinegar and a clove of garlic from the pot of beans and incorporated that into a dressing with olive oil, ground cumin, and dried oregano. The salad consisted of the beans, some cut-up leftover roast chicken, sliced celery, thin sliced red onion, and cherry tomato halves. Wow, it was really tasty! The chiles added a very pleasant, subtle warmth. Still didn't have a distinctive chile flavor, but the warmth was just sooo perfect.