Description
This hearty white bean stew is flavored with smokey bacon but chicken sausage and baby spinach keep it healthy.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 3 strips thick cut bacon, diced (I use hickory smoked bacon)
- 9 ounces chicken sausage (the pre-cooked kind), any flavor, sliced
- 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 (15-ounce) cans white beans, rinsed (I use one can of cannellini beans and one can of great Northern white beans)
- 1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
- 2–3 ounces baby spinach (about 3-4 cups)
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Instructions
- Cook meats. In a cast iron skillet, cook diced bacon over medium high heat. When bacon is almost cooked through, add sausage and cook until sausage is warmed through and bacon is nicely browned. Transfer sausage and bacon to a plate. Drain off all but 2 teaspoons of bacon grease from pan. If you do not have enough bacon grease or prefer a lighter dish, substitute in olive oil.
- Cook beans. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion and cook until onions begin to soften and get brown, 5-8 minutes. Stir in garlic and thyme. Cook until onions are soft. Add beans and broth and cook, until all the liquid is absorbed, 8-10 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the pan. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add spinach. Add spinach by handfuls and cook just until wilted, about 2 minutes.
- Mix. Stir in sausage and bacon mixture.
- Serve. Sprinkle with paprika and serve with crusty bread.
Notes
- Recipe adapted from Bon Appétit, February 2013.
