Tuscan White Bean Salad

A delicious summer salad with great flavors. Make it quick by buying a can of navy beans instead of dried. You’ll save lots of time (skip the first two steps entirely). It’d be even better with hunks of mozzarella instead of the cheap shredded kind, I’m sure.

Tuscan White Bean Salad

Makes 6-8 servings. Recipe from Epicurious.

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups dried navy beans, rinsed and picked over
1/4 cup olive oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
4 cups firmly packed spinach, washed, drained, and stems removed
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup pitted black olives, such as kalamata or niçoise
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Dressing:
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
To quick-soak the beans: Place the beans in a large pot with water to cover by 3 inches and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes. Remove from the heat, drain, and rinse.

To cook the beans: Place the beans in a large pot and add enough water to cover by 3 to 4 inches. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until beans are tender but still firm. Drain and rinse the beans thoroughly. Set aside to cool.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook and stir until slightly brown, about 5 minutes.

For dressing, combine the vinegar, garlic, mustard, and oregano in a small bowl. Add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream while whisking constantly until all the oil is incorporated. Season with salt and pepper and refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use.

Toss the beans, onion, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, mozzarella, and olives in a large bowl with the vinaigrette until just combined. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use or up to 1 day. If refrigerating, add the spinach just before serving.

Tuscan Tuna and Bean Sandwiches

I struggle with lunch. If there aren’t leftovers from the night before, I’m more likely to skip lunch altogether than actually spend the time to make something. But this tuna sandwich is worth the extra effort. It’s got a nice flavor, with a bit of a kick from the olives, quite good.

Tuscan Tuna and Bean Sandwiches

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from epicurious.

INGREDIENTS
For beans
1 (14- to 15-oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

For tuna salad
2 (6-oz) cans Italian tuna in oil, drained
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup pitted Kalamata or other brine-cured black olives, finely chopped
1 celery rib, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

For sandwiches
8 (1/3-inch-thick) slices rustic Italian bread (from a round crusty loaf) or 4 (4-inch-long) oval panini rolls
1 cup loosely packed trimmed watercress sprigs

DIRECTIONS
Prepare beans:
Coarsely mash beans with a fork in a bowl, then stir in garlic, lemon juice, oil, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Make tuna:
Flake tuna in a bowl with a fork, then stir in basil, olives, celery, onion, oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper until combined.

Assemble sandwiches:
Spoon one fourth of bean mixture on 1 slice of bread, then top with one fourth of tuna salad, some watercress, and a slice of bread. Make 3 more sandwiches in same manner.

Tuscan Tuna and Bean Sandwiches.

Look familiar? Well, it didn’t to me. This has never happened before. We made a recipe we thought was new, and as I was getting ready to post it, I realized we had posted it before. Before meaning way back in ‘07 when I thought the closer I could get to the food the better (you rarely see the entire plate in those photos). But yea. We actually made something twice without realizing it. I could have moved on and posted one of the other recipes I have queued in my photo library, but for some reason I felt I had to post this picture. If a sandwich could ever be described as pretty, this just might be the one. Or maybe it’s not the sandwich itself but the beautiful blurry background colors – rich brown and turquoise blue. That could be it too. I can never have enough of brown and turquoise.

Revisiting things is nice too. You know, since I know not all of you have been reading this blog since ‘07, nor do you have the time to travel back that deep in the archives (or maybe you do? if so, well done!) With that in mind, I may have to dredge up a few old favorites in need of a better photo (sorry, but some of my initial shots just don’t do the poor recipe justice!) and repost them for all to enjoy, again.

And no, I didn’t plan on two sandwich posts back to back either. Give me a break, or I just might have to make another sandwich and go for three in a row. So there. I like sandwiches. You should too.

Tuscan Tuna and Bean Sandwiches

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from epicurious.

INGREDIENTS
For beans
1 (14- to 15-oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

For tuna salad
2 (6-oz) cans Italian tuna in oil, drained
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup pitted Kalamata or other brine-cured black olives, finely chopped
1 celery rib, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

For sandwiches
8 (1/3-inch-thick) slices rustic Italian bread (from a round crusty loaf) or 4 (4-inch-long) oval panini rolls
1 cup loosely packed trimmed watercress sprigs

DIRECTIONS
Coarsely mash beans with a fork in a bowl, then stir in garlic, lemon juice, oil, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Flake tuna in a bowl with a fork, then stir in basil, olives, celery, onion, oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper until combined.

Spoon one fourth of bean mixture on 1 slice of bread, then top with one fourth of tuna salad, some watercress, and a slice of bread. Make 3 more sandwiches in same manner.