Giant Limas With Winter Squash Food

GIANT LIMAS WITH WINTER SQUASH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy ovenproof casserole or Dutch oven and add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until it is tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in half the garlic and cook, stirring, until it is fragrant, 30 seconds to a minute. Add the beans, water and bouquet garni and bring to a simmer. Cover and place in the oven for 45 minutes.
• Remove the casserole from the oven and stir in the remaining garlic, the winter squash, and salt to taste. If the mixture seems dry, add a little more water. Return to the oven and bake an hour longer, or until the beans and squash are very tender. Remove from the heat and remove the bouquet garni. Adjust salt, add pepper to taste and stir in the slivered sage.

MINESTRONE WITH GIANT WHITE BEANS AND WINTER SQUASH

Steps:

• First simmer beans. Drain soaked beans and place in a large saucepan with 2 quarts water, halved onion, crushed garlic and bay leaf. Bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes. Add salt to taste (I usually use 1 teaspoon salt per quart of water) and continue to simmer another 30 minutes. Beans should be almost tender. Remove from heat and use tongs to remove and discard onion half, garlic cloves and bay leaf.
• While beans are simmering you can make tomato base. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven, and add onion, carrot and celery. Add a pinch of salt and cook, stirring, until vegetables are just about tender, about 5 minutes, and add parsley and leeks. Cook, stirring, until leeks are slightly wilted, about 3 minutes, and stir in garlic along with another generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, just until the garlic smells fragrant, 30 seconds to a minute, and stir in tomatoes with their juice and salt to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, for about 10 minutes, until tomatoes have cooked down somewhat and smell fragrant. Remove from heat until beans are ready.
• Add beans and their broth to tomato base, stir together, add bouquet garni and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. Add winter squash and continue to simmer for another 30 to 45 minutes, until squash and beans are very tender. Taste, adjust salt, and add freshly ground pepper to taste.
• Just before serving heat through and stir in a generous handful of chopped fresh parsley or basil, or a mix of the two. Serve, topping each bowl with freshly grated Parmesan.

GIGANTES

Steps:

• Add the beans to a pot with enough cold water to cover well. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover, and simmer until just soft throughout but not quite cooked, approximately 50 to 80 minutes, depending on the beans. Drain and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Heat olive oil over medium heat in a Dutch oven. Add onion and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and their liquid, 2 cups water, honey, cloves, salt, and pepper and boil gently for 20 to 30 minutes or until it begins to thicken. Stir in the parsley and remove from heat.
• Place the beans in an oven-proof dish, pour tomato mixture on top, stir and spread mixture out evenly. Bake 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until beans are soft. (Check the dish during cooking and if needed, add a small amount of boiling water.) The dish will look crispy on top. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes before serving. Serve hot or at room temperature.

PASTA WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND LIMA BEANS

Steps:

• Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender and golden, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, thyme and crushed red pepper and stir 1 minute. Add squash and lima beans and sauté 3 minutes. Add 2 cups broth and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 6 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain. Return to pot. Add squash mixture to pasta. Toss to blend, adding more broth by 1/4 cupfuls to moisten if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.