Heirloom Bean and Mushroom Stew (Vegan

Serves 6

Recipe from Food52

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

We thought this was just scrumptious.  It’s such a simple dish and easy to make, but it’s definitely company-worthy.

1 pound Christmas lima beans or other large limas

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 medium onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

8 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

6 ounces Portobello mushrooms, chopped

8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, thickly sliced

3 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 heaping teaspoon dried thyme

1 (28 oz.) can plum tomatoes in puree

½ cup red wine

½ cup reserved bean cooking liquid

½ cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Place the beans in a large pot and over with water by about two inches.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the beans are tender. (Christmas lima beans can take up to two hours.) Drain, reserving ½ cup of the cooking liquid.  Clean and dry the pot. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in the same large pot.  Add the onions and garlic, and sauté for 5 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and thyme, raise the heat to medium-high and cook for 5 minutes longer, stirring constantly.  Add the tomatoes including the puree, crushing the tomatoes with your hands and discarding any hard stem ends.  Add the wine, bean cooking liquid, parsley, salt and pepper.  Gently stir in the beans.  Simmer, partially covered for about 20 minutes.  Serve over soft polenta*, crusty bread, brown rice, noodles or pasta.  By my calculations, 1 of 6 servings is about 499 calories.

Soft Polenta (Makes 4 servings)

Recipe from Everyday Food

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

(Polenta has cheese and butter and so it is not vegan. If you wish to serve the stew vegan, serve it with brown rice or whole-wheat pasta or a crusty bread.)

4 cups water

1½ teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

¾ cup yellow cornmeal or polenta (not quick-cooking)

¼ cup freshly, finely grated cheese (Parmesan, Asiago or sharp Cheddar)

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter

In a large saucepan combine the water, salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Whisking constantly, very gradually add the cornmeal in a thin stream, whisking until smooth before adding more.  Reduce the heat to medium-low, simmer, whisking often, until thickened, about 10 minutes.  Remove from the heat; stir in the cheese and butter until smooth.  Serve immediately.  By my calculations, each serving is 135 calories.)