giant beans with cabbage

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/22/health/nutrition/baked-giant-white-beans-with-cabbage-recipes-for-health.html?ref=recipesforhealth&pagewanted=print

This slow-baked bean and cabbage dish is luxurious in both taste and texture. The limas become soft and pillowy after their long, slow simmer, while releasing some of their starch into the bean broth; the cabbage sweetens over time and almost melts into the velvety broth. Baked beans with cabbage traditionally contain a ham bone or some salt pork for flavor, but I get that rich umami flavor with Parmesan rinds. 

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 large carrot, finely chopped

1 pound cabbage, cored and chopped or shredded

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound large white beans or dried lima beans

7 cups water

A bouquet garni consisting of 2 Parmesan rinds, 4 parsley sprigs, 2 thyme sprigs and a bay leaf

Salt and a generous amount of freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (more to taste) 

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

2. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large, ovenproof casserole and add the onion and carrots. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes, and stir in the cabbage and half the garlic. Cook, stirring, for another 5 minutes, until the cabbage has wilted.

3. Add the beans, water, bouquet garni and salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover and place in the oven. Bake 1 hour and add the remaining garlic; taste and adjust salt. Return to the oven and bake for another 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until the beans are very tender and creamy. Taste and adjust salt. Remove the bouquet garni. Stir in the chopped parsley. Serve hot or warm. 

Yield: 6 servings.

Advance preparation: These will keep for about 4 days in the refrigerator. The starch from the beans will continue to thicken the broth, so they may require thinning with additional water when you reheat.

Nutritional information per serving: 331 calories; 5 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 milligrams cholesterol; 55 grams carbohydrates; 14 grams dietary fiber; 44 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 19 grams protein

 

Martha Rose Shulman is the author of “The Very Best of Recipes for Health.”