Escarole and White Beans

Not quite sure how many weeks we’ve been in quarantine already, but more so, every day, I’m opting for simple and flavorful meals. You don’t have to be a kitchen wizard. You just have to be open to how ingredients play together, and play with them. And for this recipe, nothing plays better than creamy white beans, rustic greens and loads of garlic.

Ages ago, one of my best friend Alessandra gave me some tips on Italian cooking (her family is from Sicily). One of her signature dishes is escarole with beans and garlic, and I was in love from the first bite.. It’s a no-fuss, simple recipe but delivers exactly what I need these days when spring is a bit on the cold side.

All you need is 4 ingredients: escarole, white beans, olive oil and garlic.

That’s it. Of course, season with salt, but that’s a given.

Note: You’ll need to wash the escarole very well as it tends to get dirty close to the root. Rinse, and leave it in a colander for when you’re ready to use it. Any residual water left on the leaves will be used to create a lovely broth to the dish.

1 head escarole, washed well, and torn/cut into bite sized pieces

1.5 cups white beans (I used cannellini)

1-2 tablespoons good olive oil

3-4 garlic cloves, sliced

1. Heat a heavy bottomed skillet or pot (I use an enamel cast iron dutch oven) and add in the oil and garlic. Season with a little salt, and lower the heat to medium so it doesn’t burn.

2. As soon as it turns fragrant, add in the escarole. Mix well until it starts to wilt a bit, then add the beans and a pinch of salt..

3. Lower the heat to medium low, cover, and cook through, for about 5 minutes (don’t over cook, you want the escarole to be bright green). Check the seasoning.

4. Plate and sprinkle with a little crushed red pepper flakes.

Fire Cider

I've been enjoying fire cider for some years now, and have had the joy of teaching a workshop at Kula Farm for the past two years. We all gather around, cut up ingredients, fill our jars and add cider vinegar, and then we wait. For a while. Strain, add honey, and just in time for the cooler months when we want a sip of something warm, spicy, and also immunity-boosting.

It’s very easy to make and it’s especially fun to make with family and friends (communal is best). It’s spicy, pungent, sweet, and for me, I’ve found it to be a great way to get my bronchial airways cleared. You can take a tsp or so with a meal, diluted or not, of you can add a splash to rice, dressings, soups, sauces, etc.

I first learned about Fire Cider from Rosemary Gladstar, a wonderful herbalism teacher and master. You can find a video of her making it here. Mountain Rose herbs also has a great recipe that I typically follow, and you can find it here.

While this is a folk recipe, and the amounts (and even which) ingredients you use tends to vary and change with your mood, locale, season, etc…..I do like to use the base recipe above, and then you can spruce it up with whichever additional ingredients you want.

The base is typically horseradish, onion, garlic, chili, and ginger. In the past, I’ve added cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, lemon, turmeric, rosemary, herbs….maybe all of them at the same time, maybe a select few. Enjoy the process, and let me know which add ins are your favorite! And remember to shake it daily, burp it (release some of the gas), strain after about a month, and then add a little bit of honey if using.

Happy Fire Cider Making!