Recipes out of the Blond Box

Photo by Howard F. Schwartz, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org (via Wikimedia Commons)

CC BY 3.0

When I was a child, my mother would serve green lima beans as a vegetable on the side of the plate, and I would leave them for last because I hated them so. 

But dried lima beans are not the same thing. They are large, fully-mature, shiny, and bright white in color – very attractive beans. But I never even considered them until I followed a recipe in “Laurel’s Kitchen” for pea soup that called for these beans to be added. Since it was good enough for Laurel, I chanced it. They were a pleasant addition to my soup, and in no way reminiscent of the little green lima beans.

This recipe comes from the back of a 1-pound bag of dried Stop & Shop Large Lima Beans, with which I have replaced a surprisingly boring version I have had for years.

1 pound dried lima beans, cooked according to package directions
½ pound Italian sausage/chorizo, chopped (optional)

4 carrots, sliced
1 leek, bulb only, chopped
2 stalks celery, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cubes vegetable bouillon
8 cups water
OR
8 cups vegetable stock

salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook lima beans according to package directions.
2. While the beans cook, brown the optional chopped sausage or chorizo; set aside.
3. Drain and rinse cooked lima beans.
4. In a soup pot, sauté vegetables in olive oil until onions and celery are translucent.
5. Add lima beans and optional sausage, and sauté for 2 – 3 minutes.
6. Add the 8 cups of water and the vegetable bouillon cubes (or 8 cups of vegetable stock); bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 ½ hours. Season with salt and pepper to taste.