Pizza Beans

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
 
Servings: 8
Time: 45 minutes Source: Smitten Kitchen

•     3 sausages, casings removed
•     2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
•     1 large onion, chopped
•     2 celery stalks, diced
•     1 large or 2 regular carrots, diced
•     Salt and freshly ground black pepper or red pepper flakes
•     2 large garlic cloves, minced
•     1/4 cup (60 ml) dry white or red wine (optional)
•     4 ounces (115 grams) curly kale leaves, chopped or torn
•     2 1/4 cups (550 grams) crushed tomatoes or favorite jarred sauce
•     1 pound (455 grams) cooked firm-tender giant white beans
•     Up to 3/4 cup (175 ml) vegetable broth
•     1/2 pound (225 grams) mozzarella, coarsely grated
•     1/3 cup (35 grams) grated Parmesan

Prepare the beans and vegetables: Heat the oven to 475 degrees. In a 2 1/2-to-3-quart (ideally oven-safe) deep sauté pan, braiser, or shallow Dutch oven, heat the olive oil on medium-high. Add the onion, celery, and carrots.

Season well with salt and black or red pepper. Cook, sautéing, until the vegetables brown lightly, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute more. Add the wine, if using, to scrape up any stuck bits, then simmer until it disappears, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the kale, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until collapsed, then add the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Add the beans, and, if the mixture looks too dry or thick (canned tomatoes range quite a bit in juiciness), add up to 3/4 cup broth, 1/4 cup at a time. Simmer the mixture together over medium for about 10 minutes, adjusting the seasonings as needed.

If your pan isn’t ovenproof, transfer the mixture to a 3-quart baking dish. If it is, well, carry on.

Bake: Sprinkle the beans first with the mozzarella, then the Parmesan, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until browned on top. If you’re impatient and want a deeper color, you can run it under the broiler.

My Notes: I can't believe how good these were. I added Johnsonville brats--cooked them first and then cooked the veg in the sausage fat. I also used jarred tomato sauce instead of canned tomatoes (RAO's Homemade). Also I couldn't find gigante beans at the store so I just used great northerns. This was seriously tasty and relatively healthy. Lots of fiber and veg. Leftovers were just as good. MXF