Thursday, July 24, 2008

Beans With Cheese and Basil

A couple of weeks back, the husband and I were at a book sale. H, a self-confessed bibliophile, picked up a couple of bags of books to add to his ever-growing collection. I looked through boxes and boxes of books before I found a few for myself. This was one of the books that I bought for less than a dollar.

I modified the original recipe just a bit. It's so simple and tasty that I've prepared it a couple of times now using different kinds of beans each time. This isn't the most appetizing looking dish, but it tastes a lot better than it looks, fortunately.

(For 2 servings)
Ingredients:
1 can (15 ounces)
cannellini beans, drained, 1/3 cup liquid reserved
½ can small
red beans
1 Tbsp olive oil
Salt to taste (keep in mind that the canned beans already have salt in them)
¼ tsp pepper
¾ -1 tsp garlic powder
6-7 fresh basil leaves, chopped
3-4 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Method:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the beans and the reserved liquid in a large bowl and partially mash the beans against the side of the bowl using a wooden spoon.

Add the oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder and chopped basil. Mix well. Place in a baking dish. (I divided the mixture between 2 ramekins.)

Sprinkle the grated cheese on top and bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese melts.
Serve hot.

20 Burps:

Cynthia said...

I really like the idea of this combo.

Swati said...

Dish is amazingly yummy!!
Nice and cheesy....

amna said...

beans and cheese.. hmmm...

karuna said...

hummm somthing like beans on toast but without the toast. nice recipe. and a quick one.

Laavanya said...

So simple?? wow.. that sounds so delicious - no wonder you've made it a couple times already.

Rajitha said...

this is a diff. recipe...would have never thought of mixing beans and cheese..unless the beans are all mushed up like in mexican food...looks delicious...

@the_whisk_affair said...

hmm, with cheese on top who could resist this yummylicious dish! but i am too scared to do anything with beans....might have to overcome that soon! ;-)

Seema said...

It looks good too TBC. Sure tasted yum yum too as you've made it many times.

sra said...

How simple, will try this! And yes, will look for the book too!

Vanamala Hebbar said...

lovely recipe ...

Rachel said...

This sure does look appetizing to me!!!

Pooh said...

Me like! I'm planning to try this soon!

Lisa Turner said...

That sounds delicious. Maybe I will make this for myself this weekend. I'm still struggling with solo dining.

Priyanka said...

That has to be a sure winner....beans, basil and cheese should make for a healthy and delicious meal. Blueberry muffins are my favorite...but these days i dont make a lot of sweets to avoid putting on weight.

Deepthi Shankar said...

that looks neat .. a nice n healthy snack

AnuZi said...

Wow what an excellent recipe. A must try for a quick weeknight meal :o)

Ranjani said...

What a great way to eat beans - I'm going to give this a shot!

TBC said...

Cynthia, Swati, Nags, Karuna, Laavanya, Rajitha, Seema, Vanamala, Rachel, Pooja, Lisa, Priyanka, Vegetable Platter and Anuzi- thanks, ladies! :D Do give it a shot. There's really nothing to it at all and it tastes oh so good!

JZ- scared? why? Is it because it's canned?

Sra- it really is! I hope you try it. The book is o.k. I wouldn't recommend buying it though. I got it only 'cos it was dirt cheap.;D


Ranjani- I hope you like it as much as we did.

grace said...

really, all you had to say was "beans" and i was there. adding cheese to the mix made me sit up and really take notice. it looks delicious to me, and even if this is all you got out of that book, i'd say you got quite a steal. :)

TBC said...

Grace- thanks! This was too simple to not try. There are a few more good ones like this which i hope to try soon.:D

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