Truffled White Beans Recipes

TRUFFLED WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Note: if you're buying metric, you want the 540 mL can of beans; you're aiming for about 2 cups of beans.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, cook diced bacon until crisp (it will take about 10 minutes or so).
• With a slotted spoon, remove bacon to drain on paper towels, but leave bacon fat in pan; raise heat to medium high.
• Add shallots and saute for one minute.
• Now add beans, thyme and lemon juice; stir.
• Cook until beans are warmed through, anywhere from two to four minutes.
• Return bacon to pan and season with salt and pepper.
• Stir in olive oil and truffle oil and remove from heat.
• Arrange spinach evenly over four plates and spoon warm bean mixture on top.

CRUSHED WHITE BEAN BRUSCHETTA WITH WHITE TRUFFLE OIL

Steps:

• In a large pot, combine the broth, beans, garlic, and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the beans are tender, about 45 minutes.
• Season the beans, to taste, with salt and pepper. Cool in the liquid. Drain the beans, reserving the garlic cloves.
• Place the beans in a bowl and coarsely mash with a potato masher. Add 2 to 3 cloves of garlic and continue mashing. Mash in the olive oil, but keep the mixture fairly coarse. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the scallions and parsley. Spoon into a serving bowl and drizzle with white truffle oil. Serve with a basket of crisp toasts and the bottle of truffle oil, for more drizzling.

MASHED WHITE BEANS WITH TRUFFLE OIL

Steps:

• Sort the beans to make sure they are free of stones or other debris. Rinse, then cover with cold water, refrigerate, and soak overnight.
• The next day, drain the beans, place them in large pot, and cover with the stock. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer the beans for 2 hours, or until they are soft, tender and yield to pressure when squeezed between your finger tips.
• Add the salt only in the final 15 minutes of cooking since the addition of salt earlier in the cooking process will result in tough beans.
• Pour the beans in to the bowl of a food processor. Begin to pulse the beans along with any of the stock that may have remained from cooking. Add all the remaining ingredients except the truffle oil and pulse together with the warm bean puree. Taste and adjust the seasoning with additional salt and add freshly ground pepper if needed. Return the bean puree to a pot set over low heat or a double boiler to keep warm. Serve each portion of puree with a drizzle of truffle oil.

SLOW-COOKER CAULIFLOWER, POTATO AND WHITE BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• In a 6- to 8-quart slow cooker, combine the potatoes, cauliflower, beans, onion, garlic, vegetable stock, butter, wine, thyme, garlic powder and 1½ teaspoons kosher salt. Cover and cook until the vegetables are very tender, about 8 hours on low.
• Remove and discard the thyme sprig, and turn off the slow cooker. Add the lemon juice. To make a completely smooth and creamy soup, purée the ingredients using an immersion blender. (Or, purée the soup in a blender in two batches, transferring the puréed soup to a different pot.) To make a textured, chunky soup, smash the ingredients using a potato masher in the slow cooker. Stir in the sour cream and chives. Taste and add additional salt if necessary. Serve in bowls topped with black pepper, crushed potato chips and shredded Cheddar. For leftovers, gently reheat the soup on the stovetop or in the microwave until it just barely bubbles around the edges; don't let it boil or the sour cream will break.

ROASTED COD WITH WHITE BEANS, TOMATO COMPOTE, AND TRUFFLE OIL

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat, add the shallots and garlic, and sauté for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.
• Reduce heat to medium low and cook the tomatoes until all the liquid has evaporated, but the tomatoes are still slightly chunky.
• While the tomatoes are cooking, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Season both sides of the cod with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and sear each side for about 2 minutes, or until nicely browned. When the fillets are seared, place them on a baking sheet. Put cod in the oven to finish cooking. (According to Chef Ripert, an easy test for doneness is to insert a metal skewer into the center of a fillet for 5 seconds. The fish is done when the skewer goes in easily and, when removed, feels slightly warm to your lip.).
• Place 1/2 cup of the beans in a food processor with the reserved bean-cooking liquid and purée until smooth to make the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• To serve, spoon tomato compote in the center of each plate and place a cod fillet on top. Spoon bean sauce outside the compote, and sprinkle reserved whole cooked beans around the fish and over the two sauces. Drizzle with tiny drops of truffle oil.

TRUFFLED WILD MUSHROOMS OVER WHIPPED WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add leek and sauté 2 minutes. Stir in beans, broth, garlic, and thyme. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer bean mixture to food processor and blend until creamy and smooth. Return to skillet, cover, and keep warm.
• Heat remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil in medium skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté 8 minutes, or until soft and brown. Season with salt and pepper and stir in parsley.
• Spoon whipped bean mixture into shallow bowls. Top with equal portions of mushrooms. Drizzle each serving with 1/2 teaspoon truffle oil and serve.

WHITE-BEAN PUREE WITH WHITE TRUFFLES

Steps:

• Cover the beans with water, and soak overnight. Or use the quick- soaking method: Cover the beans with water, bring to a boil, and boil 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, and set aside for 1 hour.
• Drain the beans and discard the soaking water. Place the beans, onion, sage, garlic and oil in soup kettle. Add fresh water to cover. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and cook, covered, at a bare simmer until the beans are very soft, 40 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the age of the beans. Keep a teakettle of water simmering, and as the beans absorb the liquid, add more water, little by little. The beans should always be covered by liquid but never swimming in it.
• If fresh sage is used, remove the sprigs and discard. Place the beans and liquid in a food processor, and process until very smooth. If using fresh white truffle, scrape half into the puree, and continue processing until well blended. Serve the puree immediately, with the remaining truffle shaved over the surface. If using truffle paste, puree the entire amount with the beans just before serving.

BRANDADE OF WHITE BEANS WITH ARTICHOKES AND TRUFFLE VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Place the beans and the garlic in a saucepan and cover with water. Place over medium heat and simmer until beans are tender, about 40 minutes, adding more water if necessary to keep the beans covered. Drain and place the beans in a food processor. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper and process until smooth.
• Place the cream in a bowl and whip with a whisk until the cream holds soft peaks. Fold the cream into the bean puree. Adjust seasoning if needed and refrigerate until cold and firm.
• Place the vinegar in a mixing bowl and whisk in the olive oil and truffle oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cut 4 of the artichoke hearts into wedges.
• To serve, place 1 whole artichoke heart in the center of each of 4 plates. Spoon the bean puree into the center of the artichoke hearts. Arrange the artichoke wedges around the plates. Season with salt and pepper. Stir the chopped truffle, if using, into the vinaigrette and spoon it over the dish. Garnish with the mache and sprinkle with chives. Serve cold.