Monday, July 21, 2014

Marrow Beans With Lemon And Rosemary
Fast Cooking And Creamy!

Marrow beans are so creamy and they cook very quickly.

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Marrow Beans
My friend Margarite loves beans. Actually, I'd have to say she is obsessed with them. Just last week she bought 80 pounds of various beans from Purcell Mountain Farms (a great internet shop that offers exotic beans). 

She's always introducing me to new foods. Last week she came over and presented me with a little bag of dried marrow beans that she picked up at Tierra Vegetables farm stand in Santa Rosa. I had never heard of them before but was excited to try a new bean!

These plump white beans look a lot like cannellinis but they are softer, creamier and cook faster. In fact, they cook so quickly you have to really watch them so that they don't get too soft. That's good news for those of us who don't have hours and hours to cook dried beans. 

Some say marrow beans have a bacon-like flavor but I didn't detect that. Perhaps that's because I haven't eaten a piece of bacon over 30 years! 




Why Dried Beans are Superior
Having a quick cooking dried bean is a wonderful thing. Although it's very convenient to pick up a can of beans, it's hard to find one that isn't lined with bisphenol-A (BPA). BPA is an industrial chemical that can be an endocrine disruptor, interfere with the bodies hormones, and is linked to an increased risk of infertility, obesity, breast and reproductive system cancer, and more. Cooking your own beans from scratch avoids this issue. It's also a lot cheaper! 

Buy marrow beans online at Purcell Mountain Farms or on Amazon.

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Marrow Beans with Lemon and Rosemary
Vegan, Gluten Free
[Eight servings]

2 cups dried marrow beans
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1 packed tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Pick over beans and rinse thoroughly in cold water.

Two methods to soak beans: 
Place the beans in a bowl of fresh water and soak, covered, for 3 to 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse well. 
Or, place the beans in a pot of water and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat, cover, and soak for 1 1/2 hours, drain and rinse well.

Heat the oil in a medium pan (I use my 5-quart Dutch oven) and cook the onion, rosemary, garlic, and carrot for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. 




Add the soaked and rinsed beans, bay leaf, and 4 cups of water.  Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the beans are cooked to the desired texture, 30 to 45 minutes. Add more water if needed. 


After about 35 minutes of cooking


Remove the bay leaf and add salt, pepper, and lemon juice to taste.

Serve over rice, quinoa, or pasta or by serve by itself as a stew.

Per serving: 165 calories, 2 g total fat, 0.3 g saturated fat, 82 mg omega-3 and 263 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 9 g protein, 28 g carbohydrates, 6 g dietary fiber, and 303 mg sodium.

9 comments:

  1. This looks really good! I love beans. I have never heard of marrow beans, but am going seek them out. Have you ever tried pressure cooking beans to quicken the process? I never have but have heard some people do. Thanks for the recipe!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This looks really good! I love beans. I have never heard of marrow beans, but am going seek them out. Have you ever tried pressure cooking beans to quicken the process? I never have but have heard some people do. Thanks for the recipe!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Dora,
    I have an older pressure cooker that is a real bother. I know there are really good ones on the market now. My friend claims she can cook these marrow beans in her pressure cooker in just minutes!

    Enjoy the marrows!
    Joanne

    ReplyDelete
  4. I pressure cook beans all the time. In fact, it's the only way that I cook beans.
    I have eaten marrow fat beans many times. They will be coming in as fresh beans very soon.
    If soaked, marrow fat beans will take 4 to 6 minutes to cook at pressure.
    I know a lot about using the modern pressure cooker because I wrote a book all about it: The New Fast Food.
    I eat so many beans and the pressure cooker has made it fast, easy and tasty.
    Thank you for this post.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How long would you cook them for if they weren’t soaked??

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  5. Thanks Jill. You are indeed the expert in this area!
    Joanne

    ReplyDelete
  6. This recipe sounds delicious, i love beans, i have to go find me some marrow beans so i can try this recipe. Thanks

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks Carole. You won't be disappointed!
    Joanne

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  8. Hi Crystal,
    I'm not sure as I've never cooked these beans without soaking them. And now, I usually cook them in my Instant Pot, as my friend Jill mentioned above. This takes so much less time.
    Joanne

    ReplyDelete