One Pot Beans & Greens

Cooking with Jackie, Recipes, , ,

The inspiration for this meal was a friend of mine who made a beautiful bean stew last time I went camping. I was also inspired by Natalia Rudin – a chef who posts delicious recipes on Instagram that she makes for herself when she wants something simple – often including a cheesy bean dish eaten with bread.

I was travelling for work this week staying at a campground outside of Guelph. Some might think caramelized onions are a strange choice for a camping meal – and they’re right! I killed time while they were cooking by splitting firewood but probably could have let them brown longer for more flavour. Hopefully you have more patience than me! This one-pot recipe still turned out filling and delicious!

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One Pot Beans & Greens

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • 4-5 garlic scapes
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • 2 onions
  • 2 tbsp ghee
  • 1-2 cups veggie broth
  • 1/2 cup pinto beans (if dry beans, soaked overnight, can also use canned)
  • 1 1/2 cup Swiss chard
  • 1 1/2 cup baby kale
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used old cheddar – pick your favourite)
  • crusty bread
  • salt & pepper

Instructions

  1. If using dry beans, soak ahead of time. For 1/2 cup of beans I soaked in 2 cups of water in the fridge & then a cooler for about 24 hours. I also made a simple scape pesto ahead of time by adding the scapes, pine nuts & oil to a food processor and blending until uniform. Have greens washed and coarsely shredded.

  2. Slice your onions very thin and add to a saucepan with the ghee on VERY low heat and cook for 45-60 minutes – to your desired level of caramelization. The ghee’s high smoke point makes it a little more forgiving, but still regularly and keep the heat low to allow the onions to sweat and soften. Occasionally you can deglaze the pan with a splash of veggie broth.

  3. Once the onions are at your desired caramelization level, add the scape pesto to the pan and stir for another 2 minutes. Add the beans and enough veggie broth to cover the mixture. Turn the heat up to medium and simmer for 10-25 minutes: until beans are soft and broth has thickened. If too much liquid evaporates before beans soften, you can add more broth.

  4. Add Swiss chard and kale to the pot and let wilt for 4-5 minutes, stirring them into the bean/onion mixture. Add cheese and stir until dish is combined. Remove from heat.

  5. Slice bread and add to a bowl, ladling your beans and greens overtop! Salt and pepper to taste. Best enjoyed by a campfire with friends.