marinated giant white beans

In the past week, there’s been a definite seasonal shift we have felt here. Cold seeping into my bones, into the earth, flowers becoming stagnant, slowly dying while the citrus flushes brighter, like ruddy cheeks exposed to cold air. The sun shines bright as ever, though, and I find myself in between wanting hot meals and cold salads. The compromise seems to be to have both- keeping a pot of soup constantly in rotation in the fridge to warm up for lunches, while also having crispy fresh salads. I love salads with lots of hearty things on them- pan fried tofu, beans, roasted potatoes- and one of my favorites lately has been these marinated giant beans. The ones I get are dried, in bulk, and called corona beans. Sometimes they’re called gigante beans, or the smaller version is called butter beans. Whichever you use, they will be delicious.

A word on cooking these beans from scratch: the large size can tend to make them more finicky, in my experience. They fall apart more than smaller beans, thus you must take more tender care with them. Soak them overnight or up to 24 hours, in a salted water. This will help them keep their shape better when cooking. Drain, and cook in well salted water (I add lemon zest, marjoram and a few crushed garlic cloves, too), but cook them slowly. Don’t let them boil rapidly. Bring the water initially to a boil; but then, reduce and keep at a quiet simmer. They will take quite a bit longer this way, but will stay intact instead of breaking into mushy halves and quarters.

Switch up the marinade depending on your preferences- it can be as simple as oil, salt, and vinegar or you can add anything you like- a favorite variation is orange peel, toasted/lightly crushed coriander seeds instead of fennel, and crushed green olives. We generally eat these as an antipasto or a side, or tossed into lunch bowls. Leftovers get tossed into a marinated kale salad with cooked quinoa, thinly sliced red peppers, lots of thinly sliced pepperoncini, tomatoes and veg feta. Don’t forget a steaming bowl of soup on the side. A perfect transitional lunch for the last leg of fall.

3 cups cooked giant white beans
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp fennel seeds
a garlic clove, finely crushed
a big pinch of dried oregano
a big pinch of chile flakes (or minced peperoncini)
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
finely grated lemon zest from 1 lemon

Warm up the beans in their cooking liquid, then drain and rinse. Whisk together the remaining ingredients and pour over the beans, tossing gently (this type of bean can tend to break apart easily). Let sit at room temperature for a few hours, mixing whenever you come into the kitchen (alternatively, transfer to fridge in a sealed container and shake it every once in a while). This ensures all beans come in contact with the vinaigrette. Eat straight from the fridge or at room temp. They will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for 5-6 days.