Look for the largest white beans (such as gigantes) you can find or, in a pinch, use cannellini (also known as white kidney beans). Health magazine dubbed beans one of their "top ten anticancer foods"-so make this dish often and qualify as a mangiafagioli, which means "bean-eater" in Tuscany, whence this dish originates.
Serves 10
12 ounces dried large white beans
5 large cloves garlic
4 tablespoons pesto, homemade of store-bought
1. Soak beans overnight in enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Alternatively, place beans in a pot with water to cover; boil for 2 minutes and let sit, off heat, for 1 hour.
2. Drain beans and rinse in a colander. Place in a large pot with cold water to cover by 2 inches. Add 1 tablespoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns.
3. Peel garlic. Chop all but 1/2 clove very finely. Add to beans. Bring to a boil a boil for 2 minutes. Lower heat to maintain a simmer. Cover pot and cook for 1 hour 45 minutes, or until beans are quite tender but still retain their shape. Drain beans in a colander, reserving 2 cups cooking liquid. Place beans and half of reserved cooking liquid in a bowl. Push remaining 1/2 clove garlic through a garlic press, and add it to beans: add pesto, salt and pepper to taste, and additional cooking liquid if necessary. Heat gently in a saucepan before serving. Serve immediately.
Recipe by Rozanne Gold. Healthy 1-2-3
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