Michelle prepared a Vegetarian Bean and Apple Cassoulet for the main course for the South Arm Older Adults Cooking Club.

Original cassoulet is loaded with meat. This is a vegetarian version where protein is substituted with white beans. This dish can be made in less than half an hour if you use canned beans, but Michelle prefers the texture of the cooked, dried beans with some planing ahead as the dried beans will cook faster after soaking in boiling water for overnight.

Serve with crostini or slices of baguette alongside.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups dried beans (Zuni or other white beans) or 3 canned white beans, drained
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, peeled and diced
• 2 carrots peeled and diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 2 medium Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed and diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 apple, peeled and diced
• 4 sprigs thyme, stripped from stem or 1 teaspoon dried one
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1 cup apple cider or unsweetened apple juice
• optional: cooked bacon (veggie or pork for the carnivores!)

Source: mintgreenapron.blogspot.com

Instructions

If using dried beans, rinse beans in cool water. Place beans in a bowl and cover with several inches of water. Let sit for 6 to 8 hours or overnight. Drain. Put in a pot with lots of salted water and bring to a boil. Turn off and let stand for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Drain.

In a large dutch oven or soup pot, beat oil over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, celery and potatoes and saute until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, apple, thyme and bay leaf and saute for another couple minutes.

Add vegetable stock and apple cider.

Add reserved beans or canned beans and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables and beans are tender. If desired, puree a half cup of cassoulet to make it thicker. A hand blender works well for this. Season with sea salt and ground black pepper and drizzle each serving with olive oil. If desired, garnish with bacon.