Garlicky (Or Not) Chard and White Beans With Caramelized Onions

Laurie150's Note:

Caramelized onions are rich and flavourful, then stirred with white beans, letting the flavours meld. Garlic is sauteed with chard, then it is all tossed together. If you are making a few dishes, this is a great one to add because as it sits at room temperature, the flavours come together more and more, and it tastes great warm, hot, or cold.

• Total Time: 40 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 6

Yield: 6.0 side se ...

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 3 large yellow onions, sliced
• 2 (15 ounce) cans white beans, drained and rinsed (I like canellini beans and butter beans, but have also used navy beans and chickpeas)
• 2 bunches swiss chard, rinsed well and chopped (stalks in 1/2-inch pieces and leaves in ribbons)
• 4 -6 garlic cloves
• salt
• fresh ground pepper

Directions:

1. 1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large saucepan, and cook onions on medium-high heat, until caramelized. This can take a couple hours if you have the time. You can sprinkle a bit of sugar or brown sugar on the onions to speed up the process. Here is a great resource for how to do the onions: http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Caramelizing-Onions-Step-by-Step/Detail.aspx.
2. 2. Once onions are caramelized, or to your liking, stir in the white beans. Let cook on low for about 5 minutes, stirring to coat beans with onions. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. 3. In a large saucepan, heat remaining oil over medium heat. Add garlic (as much as you like) and stir for about 30 to 45 seconds, until fragrant. Add chard, and cook until wilted and stalks are soft, about 5 minutes.
4. 4. Add beans into chard mixture and stir to combine all ingredients together. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately if you choose, but I like to let it rest about 10 minutes, or cover it for a bit if I am still preparing other dishes.

Reviews

[PioneerValleyGirl]

Tasty vegetable dish. I had spinach on hand, so I substituted that for the chard, and kept the garlic fairly low to let the sweetness of the onions come through (though I'm a garlic lover, so I may bump it up in future versions). I used dried Great Northern beans, and was happy with them. I also had the leftovers with a bit of olive oil and Parmesan on pasta, which I think I liked even better than the first time.