The Quiet Country House

Baby Bella & White Bean Stew...

Four days into a winter storm, the school is actually closed for a "snow day." This rarely happens here. Mostly, we just take winter weather in stride; we're used to it. However continuous snowing and blowing ultimately will slow those of us who live on the back roads down a bit more than usual. Sub-zero temps (taking wind chill into consideration) just adds to the equation.

For lunch, I just ate a big bowl of yesterday's Baby Bella & White Bean Stew. This is a recipe that I came up with after hunting for one online, but not finding what I was looking for. I thought I would share, in case anyone else looks for excuses to buy Baby Bella (little portebello's, a.k.a. crimini) mushrooms. This warm, filling stew is a really good excuse!

Baby Bella and White Bean Stew

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

3/4 cups chopped onions (a combination of red and green, or just whatever you have on hand)

6 cloves garlic, (4 chopped roughly and 2 crushed)

2 cups sliced Baby Bella mushrooms

2 (16 oz) cans veggie broth

2 (16 oz) cans white beans

1 cup frozen chopped spinach

1/2 cup plain or whole wheat couscous

1/4 cup red white or balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon oregano

1/4 to 1/2 crushed red pepper

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat olive oil. Saute onions, garlic, mushrooms and spices until mushrooms are golden. Deglaze the pan by stirring in wine or vinegar. Add broth, white beans, and spinach. Cook on medium high until the broth comes to a soft boil. Add in couscous and turn off heat. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

This will really thicken up, so add more veggie broth if you want it more soupy. If you like things spicy, this is good garnished with crushed red pepper and/or a little shot of hot sauce.

This will make 4 to 6 generous servings.

photo by Aisling, February 5, 2007