Sausage and White Bean Stew with Escarole (or Spinach)

This is a delicious soup/stew that is perfect for a cold night.   An old roommate of mine, Andrea Bearce Duty, also loved to cook and this is one of the recipes I made sure to get from her before she moved out.  It is simple to make, healthy, delicious and of course makes great leftovers.   The other great thing about this recipe is it is very easy to make it more as a soup or as a stew.  If you want it to be soupier, then stick to the original measurements.  If you want it more hearty like a stew, add more meat and beans and go a little lighter on the chicken broth.  Either way it is delicious and Andy and I could not get enough of it last night.

What I loved about Andrea was how everyday I came home from school she was either cooking or baking something new.  She truly had a love for food and now she owns a very successful business in Austin called Bake Sale that specializes in dessert bars for weddings and special events.  If you live down there, you should definitely check it out! 

P.S. It is hard to get a good picture of stew when it is still steaming and fogging up the camera lens.  So I apologize for the blurriness.

Here is the recipe:

1 tsp. olive oil

8 ounces bulk Italian Sausage, sweet and/or hot (I used hot Italian Chicken Sausage and I used almost a pound)*

5 large garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste (I like to use more)

1 head escarole chopped into 2-inch pieces (spinach works too)

3 cups cooked or canned white beans , partially drained (I used 4 cups)

3 cups chicken stock or chicken broth (I used 4 cups)

½ stick unsalted butter (optional and I didn’t use it)

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

2 plum tomatoes, diced

2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

salt and pepper to taste

*I always find chicken sausage still in its casing, but it is very easy to remove the casing.  Then brown like normal sausage.

In a large deep skillet, heat the olive oil then cook the sausage over medium heat until it begins to brown, about 10 minutes.

Add the garlic and pepper flakes to the skillet and sauté over medium-high heat until the garlic softens, about 2 minutes.  Add the escarole and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes.

Add the beans and cook for 1 minute.  Add the stock or broth and bring to a gentle boil.

Add the butter (optional), cheese, tomatoes and half the parsley.  Mix to combine and cook until heated through and butter is melted.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish with remaining parmesan and parsley.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did last night!

Stuffed,

Brittany