White Bean And Vegetable Cassoulet With Millet Crust Recipes

Steps:

• The night before you want to make the cassoulet, put the dried beans in a pot with enough cold water to cover them by at least an inch. Let the beans soak overnight in the refrigerator, then rinse and drain them. (Or, if you're in a rush--or you haven't planned far enough in advance--bring the water with the beans to a boil, boil for 2 minutes, pull the pot from the heat, and soak the beans for an hour. Rinse the beans under cold water and drain.)
• Warm 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a small saute pan or skillet over medium heat. When it's hot, add the onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the onion and garlic are tender but not colored, about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and, when it's incorporated evenly, add the diced tomato; pull the pan from the heat and set aside.
• Put the beans in a Dutch oven or large casserole. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Add the celery, carrots, turnips, fennel, split tomato, and the bouquet garni. Cut a parchment paper circle to fit inside the pot (see Glossary, page 369) and press the paper gently against the ingredients. Lower the heat so that the liquid bubbles at a steady simmer, and cook, stirring now and then, until the beans are tender, about 1 hour. Season the casserole with salt and pepper shortly before the beans are cooked through. When the beans are done, pull the pot from the heat and remove and discard the bouquet garni and whatever is left of the tomato. Drain the liquid from the pot into a pitcher and keep close at hand. Working gently, transfer the vegetables to a bowl.
• Spoon the beans into a baking dish--a pottery casserole would be perfect--and stir in the onion-tomato paste mixture along with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add enough of the reserved cooking liquid to just cover the beans. Top with the vegetables and moisten with more of the cooking liquid. Reserve the remaining liquid if you are going to reheat the cassoulet. (The cassoulet can be made up to this point a day in advance, cooled, and stored tightly covered in the refrigerator. Bring it to room temperature, then reheat it for about 1 hour in a 350 degree F. oven, adding some of the reserved cooking liquid if the casserole seems dry. Fifteen minutes before the cassoulet's ready, put on the crust and turn up the oven temperature, as directed below.)
• The Crust: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Toss together the bread crumbs, garlic, and parsley and stir in the melted butter. Spread the mixture evenly over the cassoulet and slide the casserole into the oven. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the crumbs are golden brown and crusty.
• To Serve: Bring the casserole to the table and serve immediately, spooning crust, vegetables, and beans into warm soup plates.

Steps:

• Wash the beans well and put them in a large stockpot. Add water to the beans to cover by 2 inches and set over high heat. Bring to a boil for 2 minutes, remove from the heat, cover and let stand 1 hour.*
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Put the duck sausage on a baking sheet and place it in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove and let cool. The sausage will not be fully cooked through.
• Add the whole onion, whole carrot, 2 of the thyme sprigs and 3 of the bay leaves to the beans. Add more water to the pot to cover again by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and let simmer until the beans are mostly tender but with still a little bite to them, about 50 to 60 minutes. The beans will have soaked up all most all of the liquid you cooked them in.
• Meanwhile, pour the olive oil into a large skillet and place over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook stirring every now and then until crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon remove the crispy bacon pieces to a paper towel lined plate and reserve. To the same skillet, add the diced onion, sliced carrots and garlic and sweat the mixture for 20 minutes, until the onion begins to turn translucent.
• Slice the duck sausage on the bias into 1/2-inch thick pieces and add them to the vegetable mix. Add the remaining bay leaves, thyme sprigs and sliced kielbasa and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Next add the wine, beef broth, tomato paste and salt and pepper. Raise the heat to high, bringing the mixture to a boil. Stir well to dissolve the tomato paste and lower the heat. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
• Remove the whole onion and carrot from the beans, add the vegetable sausage mixture to the stockpot and return to a low heat. Stir well and cover. Let the cassoulet simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until most of the wine mixture has been absorbed by the beans. Spoon into a casserole dish, sprinkle the top of each serving with some of the reserved crispy bacon and serve with a crusty baguette on the side.

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium stock pot. Add the vegetables to the oil, stir frequently, and cook until lightly brown around the edges. Add remaining ingredients, except sausage, 1 at a time. Bring to a boil and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in sausage and allow to cook for 10 more minutes. Place in bowls, spoon 1 tablespoon of pesto and 1/4 to 1/2 cup of sausage into each bowl. Serve with Garlic-Parmesan Crostini.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Season the sausage with salt, to taste, and carefully place in a single layer across the skillet. Cook the sausage for 3 to 5 minutes over medium-high heat or until browned. Turn the sausages and repeat on opposite side. Remove from heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Slice into 1/4-inch slices.
• Combine all ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Heat the oil in a small skillet. Add the garlic and cook for 5 minutes or until garlic begins to brown. Remove from heat. Brush the garlic oil on the top and bottom of each slice of bread. Place the bread in a single layer over a sheet pan. Sprinkle each slice with parmesan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes on the middle oven rack until bread browns over the top. Serve.

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, add the meat, and cook, turning as needed, until the meat is deeply browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and drain off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat.
• Turn the heat to medium and add the garlic, leeks or onions, carrots, celery, and zucchini or cabbage; and sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, their liquid, the reserved meat, and the herbs and bring to a boil. Add the beans; bring to a boil again, stirring occasionally, then reduce the heat so the mixture bubbles gently but continuously. Cook for about 20 minutes, adding the liquid when the mixture gets thick and the vegetables are melting away.
• Fish out the meat and remove the bones and skin as needed. Chop into chunks and return to the pot along with the cayenne. Cook another minute or two to warm through, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary and serve.