Easy Tuscan White Beans

Recipe Ingredients

• Cannellini beans: You'll need two cans of cannellini beans, or another mild-flavored white bean like Great Northern beans. Ideally I'll get the low-sodium version, but rinsing and draining the standard type removes a considerable amount of the sodium content anyway.
• Sun-dried tomatoes & oil: Find a jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes for this recipe, not the dry-packed variety. These may be in the pasta aisle or in a section of the produce department. Oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes have a richer flavor and the flavored oil gets put to use when sautéing the garlic. Grab another jar for making bold sun-dried tomato pesto.
• Broth: Your favorite chicken or vegetable broth; I'm partial to the reduced-sodium version of either.
• Pecorino: Added to this Italian white bean skillet before serving and helps thicken the sauce consistency even more. Parmesan can be substituted, but I strongly recommend the bolder flavor of Pecorino Romano if available to you. It'll likely be in the specialty cheese case in the deli department of the store vs. the standard cheese aisle.
• Herbs: Sage, rosemary, and oregano for classic Italian herb flavor. See the recipe card for converting amounts of fresh to dried herbs and vice versa.
• Garlic: Whole cloves, minced or pressed, provide a more well-rounded flavor than the jarred pre-minced kind.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Sauté garlic and oregano in oil.

Using a blend of olive oil and the seasoned oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes to sauté the garlic and bloom the oregano amplifies that Tuscan flavor right from the jump.

Add broth, tomatoes, beans, and herbs.

Bring the broth to a simmer, then stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, white beans, sage, and rosemary.

Simmer to thicken, then add cheese.

Cook for 5-10 minutes to thoroughly heat the beans and give the broth time to thicken. Then stir in the Pecorino once the pan is off the heat before serving.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• Don't cook it too long. Once the beans are added to the skillet, all that's needed is for the broth to reduce a bit and thicken up some. This will be brief, around 5-10 minutes. Cooking the beans too long will cause them to break down and become mushy.
• Looking for a little heat? Add crushed red pepper flakes or a *small* amount of chopped oil-packed Calabrian chili peppers to taste.
• Make it vegetarian. Choose your favorite vegetable broth (I like the "no-chicken" base by Better than Bouillon) and swap the Pecorino for a vegetarian Parmesan, made with vegetable- or microbial-based enzymes and not animal rennet. The nature of how authentic Pecorino Romano is produced prohibits vegetarian versions.
• Make it a meal. Upgrade these Tuscan white beans from side to main by serving over grains like farro for a vegetarian meal (use vegetable broth and a suitable Parmesan), or stir in cooked and crumbled sweet Italian sausage for extra protein.

Serving Suggestions

My favorite condiment topping for this Tuscan bean skillet is condiment-grade balsamic vinegar. Not that that's anything unique to these beans, it's my top pick for Italian-leaning soups like my hearty lentil soup with Italian sausage, too.

Condiment-grade is a middle ground between base level, supermarket-style balsamic vinegar and the real deal, aged and certified, traditional balsamic vinegar. It has a deeper flavor and thicker consistency that makes a drizzle-over-top-to-serve feel luxurious (without the major price tag of "traditional" balsamics). A little goes a long way!

Otherwise salt these Tuscan beans to taste, add a few good cranks of black pepper, and/or more shredded Pecorino when ready to dig in.

More Italian American Side Dishes