Comfort Food

Sometimes I just want a bowl of delicious goodness.

That's when I turn to this simple yet soul-satisfying dish.

White beans cooked with garlic, steamed greens, and a drizzle of fruity olive oil. It's a wonderful combination of flavors and soothing textures.

If you haven't cooked dried beans before, this is the recipe to start with. If you're not sure how fresh your beans are, start it early in the day. Cook until the beans are soft, then turn off the heat and let them sit on the stove until you start the greens, about 15 minutes before you're ready to eat. Reheat and serve.

If you want to use canned beans, use 2 14-oz cans. Drain off the can juice and reheat them with some vegetable stock or water along with the seasonings. It won't be quite as delicious (or cheap) but it will be good.

For the greens, I was lucky enough to get rapini and lamb's quarters from the Flora Bella stand at the Hollywood Farmers Market. You can use spinach, dandelions, chard, turnip greens, beet greens, whatever you have. If you're not used to bitter greens like dandelion, add some sweet greens like chard and spinach to tone it down. (The bitter greens are excellent for the liver, so try to use some of them.)

In the past, I have only made this recipe when Larry was out of town. I believed he would not like it. But I was wrong. I cooked it last week when I was craving some good greens, and he said he really liked it. And he ate it as leftovers too, so I believe him.

Italian Greens and Beans
1 lb white beans
1 red chile, dried or fresh
3 bay leaves
3 cloves garlic
salt and pepper
1 lb greens (or 2 bunches)
olive oil

Sort the beans and discard any dirt or stones. Rinse them and put them in a large pot with the chile and bay leaves. Peel the garlic and throw it in too. Add boiling water from the kettle to cover by 2 inches. (Use cold tap water if you don't have enough boiling.) Bring to the boil and cook, covered, until the beans are tender. I used white lima beans from Lompoc, probably harvested this year, so they only took 90 minutes to cook. Yours might take up to 4 hours. Plan accordingly. And remember, it's better to cook them early and let them sit than it is to serve crunchy beans.

(Concerned about the gassy qualities of beans? The garlic helps eliminate them.)

Wash the greens well. (In this era of plastic mulch and drip irrigation, the greens might be clean. But if it's rained they can be quite muddy. Swish them in basins of cold water until no dirt is left in the bottom.) Put them in a large pot with an inch of boiling water in the bottom. Let them cook until the stems are tender, about 5 minutes. Drain them and chop into bite-sized pieces.

Taste the beans and add salt and pepper to enhance the flavor.

Using a slotted spoon, put some beans into a shallow soup bowl. Add a little of the bean juice. Spoon some greens on top. Drizzle with a little olive oil. And enjoy.

Serves 6. (But is great reheated the next day)