Baked Gigantes in Tomato Sauce

Look for gigantes, beans as big as your thumb, in Greek groceries; they don't fall apart during cooking. We found ours in a market that specializes in Mediterranean foods. Substitute large lima beans if you can't find gigantes.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 cup)

Ingredients

• 1  pound  dried gigantes beans or large dried lima beans (about 2 1/2 cups)
• 1/4  cup  extravirgin olive oil
• 3  cups  chopped onion
• 1  cup  chopped celery
• 1  cup  finely chopped carrot
• 3  garlic cloves, minced
• 2  teaspoons  dried oregano
• 1  (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried dill
• 2  teaspoons  honey
• 1 1/4  teaspoons  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Sort and wash beans; place in a large Dutch oven. Cover with water to 2 inches above beans; cover and let stand 8 hours or overnight. Drain beans. Cover with water to 2 inches above beans, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour or until beans are tender. Drain beans.

Preheat oven to 325°.

While beans cook, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic; cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in oregano and tomatoes; simmer 10 minutes. Stir in parsley, dill, honey, salt, and pepper. Combine the cooked beans and tomato mixture in a 3-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Bake at 325° for 1 hour.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

325 (20% from fat)

Fat:

7.3g (sat 1g,mono 5g,poly 0.8g)

Protein:

15g

Carbohydrate:

52.1g

Fiber:

14.5g

Cholesterol:

0.0mg

Iron:

5.5mg

Sodium:

643mg

Calcium:

112mg