Sunday, February 19, 2012

Beans! - Interview With Cresent Dragonwagon, And Cannellini Beans With Red Pepper And Rapini

Ben sent this interview with Cresent Dragonwagon:

The World Of Beans

The woman loves her beans! She's bean-infectious.

The interview is about 45 minutes. I listened while cooking, and eating, the stuff of that photo. It's a bean soup, some type of which I eat every day. I usually make a big pot and tap it while working, thus the small half-eaten bowl.

This was made with cannellini beans. I cook them to a paste and store in the fridge so they're available for soups. Here I lightly simmered, really just blanched for a minute or two:
  • Onions
  • Leeks
  • Mushrooms
  • Red bell pepper
  • Cauliflower
Then added and heated for 1 minute:
  • Green beans (frozen)
  • Broccoli rabe (aka rapini, a leftover from a batch-cook)
Then added and stirred until it came to a simmer:
  • Cannellini beans
  • Tomato sauce (not much, couple tablespoons)
  • Tamari (couple teaspoons)
While it's cooling I add spices. Done. Assembling the soup after the beans were previously cooked lets me keep vegetables colorful and crunchy. The red bell pepper and rapini add zing. I like some ancho chili or smoked paprika in the end.

Here's the podcast:
http://audio.wbur.org/storage/2012/02/onpoint_0216_2.mp3

Or, here's my attempt at embed:


________
Thanks, Ben. I'm going to be on the lookout for her book.

14 comments:

Bix said...

I liked the way she dealt with the antinutrient question.

Angela and Melinda said...

This is a cool post, Bix. I've heard of Crescent (intrigued by her "pagan-y" name) but never have researched what it is she actually does. She has a blog, too, w/ an inspiring Dec. post about the act of writing (I need to heed her words there more fully!). So thanks for the post--will listen to the audio as soon as we finish dealing w/ all the animals!

Bix said...

She had me at oligosaccharides.

Angela and Melinda said...

I love her--"the tiny little bean"! Haven't gotten to the oligosaccharides yet.

Angela and Melinda said...

"Beanfectious!" Heh heh.

Angela and Melinda said...

And your recipe sounds great!

Angela and Melinda said...

Jicama is a bean????????!!!!!!!!!!! I thought it was in the turnip family.

Leo said...

That looks delish! I've been eating a lot of beans lately. I eat them for the iron, 'cause I rarely eat red meat. Looks like a recipe I may have to try. ;) peace

Bix said...

I was surprised to hear jicama was a bean too.

Bix said...

Leo eats beans! Bien por ti!

caulfieldkid said...

Thanks, Bix. I'll have to give this a listen and check out the book.

You know me. I'm an advocate for all things bean!

shaun

Bix said...

Shaun, I thought you'd be keen on her. You're going to be our go-to person about beans!

Anonymous said...

How did she deal with the antinutrient question?

Lena Chow said...

yum=)