This current situation calls for drastic measures and of course simple cooking. With limited ingredients available in some supermarkets we might find ourselves raiding the cupboard or the freezer to whip together a meal for the family. I am trying to avoid going to the supermarket at all costs and getting creative with the pantry and the freezer. I pulled out some 'longanizas' - sausages and found a kilo of dehydrated white beans. I always tend to have dehydrated legumes in the house, just in case - chickpeas, lentils, beans etc. So, with my new found ingredients I decided to make a classic - Beans and Sausages.
During my student days it was one of my all-time favourite meals - on toast - although I must admit it they were the Heinz tinned baked beans and sausages, God I loved those sausages, absolutely no goodness to them, but I just loved them all the same. To be honest, healthiness never even crossed my mind then. But now the time has moved on and fortunately I have discovered wonderful dishes in my time here in Spain and one of them was precisely this - Beans and sausage, but with a twist. So I thought I would share it with you today, as you shouldn't have any trouble finding the main ingredients, others can be substituted for what you do have.
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Spanish beans and sausages: Ingredients for 4 people:
400 gr. white beans - dehydrated or bottled
8 fresh sausages - or frozen, as in my case!
200 gr. pumpkin - can be substituted with carrots or tomatoes
1 large brown onion - finely chopped
1 leek - again substitute spring onions or chives.
3 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
Water - If you have chicken stock or beef stock this will help boost the flavour.
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Parsley - either fresh, frozen or dried.
The first thing you need to do is add the garlic, leek and onion to a pressure cooker (without the lid on) with a little Extra virgin olive oil and simmer on low heat for about 8-10 minutes. Chop up the pumpkin (or the carrots/tomatoes) and add it to the pot. Season with salt and cook it all together for a further 7- 8 minutes, until they are tender. You may want to add a little water (or chicken stock if you have it) to help soften the carrots if you use them - but make sure all the water has evaporated before blending - Remove the vegetables and place them in a blender, pour in a little water or chicken/beef stock and blend it to a puree.
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Pour the puree back into the pressure cooker, add the beans (which should have been in water overnight if they were dried white beans), cover with water or stock and add a pinch of salt.
Close the pressure cooker and cook for 10-12 minutes. If you don’t have a pressure cooker you can still cook them but they will take a little longer (45 minutes) to cook but keep an eye on the water so they don’t dry out too much.
Another option is if you are in a rush is to buy the beans that are already cooked in a glass jar. If you do this, you only need to add very little water/stock and cook them on a slow heat for about 8-10 minutes.
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Now for the sausages… Brown the sausages on a griddle with a little extra virgin olive oil. Cut them in half and add them to the pot. Stir in on low heat for a couple of minutes and sprinkle some freshly chopped parsley over the top and mix in well.
Now serve with a nice piece of crusty bread, if you are lucky enough to get some!! and a glass of red wine!... - can be substituted with beer, whisky, gin, vodka - anything you can find!
Stay safe, stay at home and eat well!
We will all beat this virus together!