This recipe comes from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. I made it over the weekend when some friends came over to dinner. I think they and Mike thought I was a little crazy when I told them I was feeding them kidney beans with pears. But they’re good friends, so they tried it anyway. It was a hit! So here is the recipe for you to enjoy.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 shallots, minced
- 3 pears, cubed
- 2 15-ounce cans kidney beans, drained
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped (or heaping 1/2 teaspoon dried)
- sea salt and freshly cracked pepper
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and pears. Cook for about 5 minutes, until just starting to brown.
- Add the wine and thyme. Bring to a boil and allow most of the wine to cook off.
- Add the kidney beans and a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes more until the beans are heated through. Serve.
(Serves 4)
I used Asian pears because I love their crunch. I used one can of dark red beans and one can of light red just to add a little variety.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
This combination is odd, but I can see it working. I really enjoy merging very different ingredients, and I’ll have to give this a shot!
It’s really the sort of thing you have to try.
My mom used to tell me that “if you start with good food, you’ll wind up with good food.” She was inferring that there are many combinations of food that may sound odd at first, but given a chance, they may just be delicious. I remember thinking that pizza with jalapeno peppers and pineapple sounded really weird, but once I tried it, it became my fave pizza. Who would have guessed… pineapple and jalapenos? Even crazier… how about chocolate chip cookies with habanero pepper bits? I tried them at a get-together with some sailing buddies. Best chocolate chip cookies I ever had! Something about the sweet & heat that just work together. I haven’t been brave enough to try to make them yet. Get the ratio wrong and they could hurt!
I’ll try the Kidney Beans & Pears recipe and report back. I love thyme and everything else in it, so we’ll see. My dad used to say, “I’ve never met a bean I didn’t like.” I’m with him on that one, so… we’ll see.
Note: Of the many recipes I’ve tried, Kalinda hasn’t let me down yet.
~ Les
Jalapeno and pineapple pizza sounds great. Pineapple pizza is Mike’s favorite.
I’m glad we have lots of brave souls around here willing to try new things.
This is going on my menu plan! I think the kids will like pears with their “jelly beans”, as A calls them. I think that speaks to our parenting if my poor children think kidney beans are candy:-).