Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Bean Symphony

2 medium tomatoes
1/2 lb. yellow beans, trimmed and snapped in half
1/2 lb. green beans, trimmed and snapped in half
2-3 T. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of red pepper flakes
1-2 T. white wine
salt and pepper
juice of one lemon

Bring a medium-large pot of salted water to boil. Carefully lower the two tomatoes in with a slotted spoon and cook for one minute. Leave the water boiling while you drop them into a bath of ice water, peel them and then set them aside.

Meanwhile, lower the yellow beans in the water for 2 to 3 minutes, until lightly cooked but still firm. Remove them from the boiling water with a large slotted spoon or tongs and plunge them in the ice bath to stop cooking them. Drain them in a colander and then spread them out on a kitchen towel to dry.

Repeat this process with the green beans, but only cook them for one minute.

Dump the water out of the pot, dry it, and heat the olive oil to medium-high. Once the oil is heated, add the minced garlic and stir it around with a wooden spoon until lightly cooked but not brown, one minute or so. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes, and then the two peeled tomatoes that you have set aside. Break them up into chunks with your spoon, and simmer this into sauciness for about 5 minutes. Add the white wine, and simmer for one more minute.

Dump the drained and dried beans into the tomato sauce, and mix it around until combined and heated through. Salt and pepper to taste. Put the salad in a serving bowl and squeeze the lemon juice all over it, tossing it lightly. Serve immediately.

**Recipe from smittenkitchen.com

No comments: