Greens n Beans
While I tried to provide exact quantities, this recipe is meant to be cooked with your senses. It’s lenient and can take a few oopsies or swapped ingredients. Pour yourself a glass of cooking wine and just enjoy! See how it’s made here.
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil and more as needed
¾ lb. of spicy italian sausage in bulk or removed from the casing
Half a medium onion, diced
Half a bulb of fennel, diced
Splash of dry white wine (if ya got it)
2 tbsp. tomato paste
4 garlic cloves, sliced
Salt
Black pepper
Crushed red pepper
2 cans of large white beans, drained and rinsed (cannellini or great northern)
1 28 oz. can of peeled tomatoes
2 heads of escarole, washed and coarsely chopped
Crusty bread, toasted with olive oil
Garnishes: Grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, chopped parsley and fennel fronds
Make it!
Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once hot, add your olive oil until it shimmers. Add sausage and immediately start breaking it up into smaller pieces with a wooden spoon in the pot (think: walnut and hazelnut sized pieces). Cook until mighty crispy and golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel-lined plate.
Add the diced onions and fennel to the pot. If the bottom is sticking from the sausage that’s okay! Throw a big splash of wine in there to deglaze all that spicy goodness. Sprinkle in three generous pinches of salt, a few grinds of pepper and some crushed reds. Cook until the fennel and onion are translucent. 4-5 minutes.
Add your garlic and tomato paste and stir until the paste turns brick red, about 3 minutes. Immediately add your can of tomatoes, crushing them with your hands (or with your wooden spoon in the pot). Add the two cans of beans and bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cover for 5 minutes.
Taste the sauce to see if it needs more salt. Likely, it will need a few more generous pinches, don’t be shy!! Add in your escarole and sausage and cook over medium for 2 minutes until the escarole has wilted but not lost all green color.
Serve with an olive oil-y, toasted piece of bread, fresh parsley, fennel fronds, grated parm and crunchy salt. Buon Appetito!
