White Bean Purée With Sun Dried Tomatoes Recipes

WHITE BEAN PURéE WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATOES

Steps:

• Place beans in medium saucepan. Add enough cold water to cover beans by 3 inches. Let stand overnight.
• Drain beans well. Return to saucepan. Add 4 cups water, onion, and rosemary sprigs. Bring to boil; reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until beans are soft, about 1 hour 45 minutes. Discard rosemary sprigs. Drain beans and onion; cool to room temperature.
• Using on/off turns, puree drained beans and onion, sun-dried tomatoes, shallots, and chopped rosemary in processor until smooth, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl. Add 3 tablespoons oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. Puree until blended. With machine running, gradually add 1/2 cup boiling water. Thin with more water by tablespoonfuls if necessary. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Transfer white bean puree to wide shallow bowl; drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with parsley. Garnish with lemon wedges. Serve with toasted pita triangles.

BRUSCHETTA WITH WHITE BEANS, SUN-DRIED TOMATOES AND BASIL

Steps:

• Rinse the beans well and then put in a 1-quart saucepan. Cover with water to 1-inch over the top of the beans. On medium-high heat, bring to a boil. Immediately take the pot away from the burner, cover and hold for 1 hour. Change the water; add half of the extra-virgin olive oil, 1 garlic clove and the bay leaf. Cook beans on low. Simmer for about 40 minutes or until tender. During last 10 minutes, add 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir in carefully. Remove from heat and hold in the saucepan with the cooking liquid until cool. This may be done 1 to 2 days before serving, and kept refrigerated.
• For the bruschetta topping:
• Preheat a grill or stove-top grill pan.
• Grill the bread on both sides until crispy. Be careful on high heat as bread burns easily.
• While bread is grilling, in a saute pan on medium heat, toast the sliced garlic in the olive oil. When it is light golden, add the chili flakes, cook for 10 seconds and then add the basil leaves. Do this carefully, as the basil may spatter some oil.
• With a slotted spoon, transfer the beans to the pan. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the bean cooking liquid (or liquid from canned beans) and mix all together. Hold warm. Adjust consistency, as necessary, with the bean liquid, a little at a time.
• When the basil leaves are wilted, remove mixture from the heat. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and chopped parsley. Toss to combine and adjust the seasoning with lemon juice, to taste, and salt and pepper.
• Lightly swipe the remaining garlic clove on 1 side of the bread. Arrange the toasted bruschetta on a serving platter and drizzle with the remaining extra-virgin olive oil. Top each piece with some of the tomato-bean mixture, then evenly divide the ricotta salata over the mixture. Serve warm.

GRILLED FLATBREAD WITH GARLIC RUBBED FILLET OF BEEF, WHITE BEAN PUREE AND SUN-DRIED TOMATO CHUTNEY

Steps:

• Combine beef, olive oil, and garlic in a large resealable plastic bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Preheat the grill to high. Grill on both sides for 3 to 4 minutes, for medium-rare. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes and then slice thinly.
• Puree the beans, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, and thyme in a food processor until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Mix together the tomatoes, olive oil, vinegar, honey, and parsley, and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Heat grill to high. Flatten flatbread dough and gently press into a large rectangle and throw on grill. Grill on 1 side until golden, about 2 minutes. Remove from grill, turn over, and spread each flatbread with a thin layer of White Bean Puree, sliced beef, roasted shallots, and Tomato Chutney. Return to grill, close cover and cook for 2 minutes. Serve immediately.
• Mix water and yeast in a large bowl and let stand 5 minutes to proof. Gradually pour in 2 cups of the flour and stir to incorporate. Mix for about 1 minute to form a sponge. Let stand, covered, for at least 1 hour.
• Put sponge in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook, add the salt and oil, then add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time, to form a dough. Remove from bowl and knead. Place in a clean oiled bowl and let rise, slowly, about 2 1/2 hours. Divide dough into 4 balls, if desired, let rise again for 1/2 hour, and then roll out as desired.

TUNA WITH WHITE BEANS AND SUN-DRIED TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• Place beans in medium bowl. Add enough cold water to cover beans by 3 inches. Let stand overnight. Drain.
• Combine beans and stock in large saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium; cover and simmer until beans are just tender, about 1 hour. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.
• Heat 3 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and sauté until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Add thyme and lemon peel and stir 1 minute. Add beans, reserved 1/2 cup cooking liquid and 2 tablespoons oil and toss until heated through, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from heat. Cover to keep warm.
• Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in another heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle tuna with salt and pepper. Add tuna to skillet and cook to desired doneness, about 3 minutes per side for medium.
• Spoon beans onto center of each of 4 plates, dividing equally among plates. Top each with tuna steak. Spoon Sun-dried Tomato Sauce over tuna steaks and serve immediately.

PASTA IN TOMATO SAUCE WITH WHITE BEANS AND SPINACH

Steps:

• Cook the pasta according to the package directions. When it's done, drain and reserve a little of the cooking water (1/2 cup or so). Return to the pot and keep warm while the sauce cooks.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, carrot, and celery and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 2 or 3 minutes. Add the tomato puree, beans, sun-dried tomatoes, and herbs to the pot and stir well. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer over medium-low heat while the pasta cooks. Toward the end of the cooking time, add the spinach to the sauce and cook just until heated through.
• Add the cooked pasta to the sauce and mix thoroughly, adding enough of the pasta water to make the sauce the consistency you like. Serve hot, garnished with the grated Parmesan.