Sausage and White Bean Stew with Spinach

This round of the recipe swap is Blogger’s Choice. I was assigned Mary Ellen’s blog, which has many tasty recipes. I didn’t have to look too long this time to find the recipe that I wanted to make. She had made this stew relatively recently and it looked fantastic. Her recipe used chorizo, but I knew that I could use any sausage really. I love cannellini beans (although they are never labeled as such at the store) so I knew this would be a well-received dinner.

I bought some chicken Andouille at the store, figuring that it was a spicy sausage. The Andouille was already cooked, so I just sliced it and browned it instead of having to cook it all the way through. This made this fairly quick recipe very quick, which is always nice on a weeknight. I did have a little trouble getting the salt and pepper just right; it kept tasting like it needed more salt, but leftovers the next day seemed salty.

I liked this, but with one exception. I didn’t like the Andouille that I used! It was just too spicy for me and it was all I could taste. It might explain why I couldn’t taste the salt properly because all I could taste was the heat and seasonings of the Andouille. That’s my fault and I will try this again using a more traditional Italian sausage. Thanks to Sarah from A Taste of Home Cooking , who organizes the swaps. I love participating so that I have a chance to try something new and different!

Sausage and White Bean Stew with Spinach

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound sausage links, sliced

1 large onion, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 sprig thyme (I used Italian seasoning)

2 15-ounce cans cannellini beans, rinsed

2 cups chicken broth

5 ounces baby spinach

Salt

Pepper

Paprika

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large straight-sided pan over medium heat. Add sausage slices and cook, turning occasionally, until browned and cooked through. Transfer sausage to a bowl; set aside.

Heat remaining oil in the same pan. Add onion, garlic, and thyme. Cook until onion is soft, stirring occasionally, 5-8 minutes. Add rinsed beans and broth. With a potato masher, slightly crush the beans to help thicken the sauce. Cook until slightly thickened, 8-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Add spinach by handfuls and cook just until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add sausage back to that pan and allow the stew to simmer for a few minutes. If the stew is too thick, add more broth and allow to simmer for a few minutes.

To serve, spoon the stew into bowls and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with paprika.

Recipe from Mary Ellen’s Cooking Creations