White Bean Spread
In the kitchen, I am generally anti-gadget. You just don’t need cupboards full of fiddly tools to make good food. A decent knife, a couple of well-loved pans, and a few wooden spoons and you are in great shape for the kind of food I like to cook.
I really am philosophically anti-gadget, but I should confess that I am also practically anti-gadget. There are definitely some next-level appliances I’d like to get my hands on, but there are quite frankly other ways I prefer to stimulate the economy these days (books, beer, and the like). On top of which, if I acquired any new equipment for my postage stamp-sized kitchen, I’d have to keep it in my bedroom, and – despite scurrilous tabloid rumors to the contrary – I don’t care to share my bed with a KitchenAid stand mixer.
I was delighted, then, when both the cost and space obstacles were overcome by the gift of a small food processor from a friend. I may not have really needed a food processor, but I definitely had some good uses for it: As delicious as my “Chunky Bean and Raw Garlic Salad” had been, it was much better in dip form.
I have really been won over by my miniature food processor (mine is not pink). It’s not much bigger than an average-sized piece of tupperware, is easy to clean, and is just as powerful as a full size mode. (And really, what food are you grinding up that requires serious torque? Peach pits? Bones? Live lobsters?). And even if you can’t persuade somebody to gift you one, they’re not very expensive, especially when compared to their full-size cousins, which can easily cost several hundred dollars.
End product endorsement. Cuisinart, please contact me at foodjunta@gmail.com to discuss payment.
This bean spread is all about the appliance. It’s got only 5 ingredients, 4 of which I always have on hand. And others would chide me for not keeping lemons also, but they can all go suck on one. A lemon that is, not a food processor.
White Bean Spread
1 14-0z. can white beans (cannelini, Great Northern, navy, etc.)
1-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
juice of about 1/4 lemon
olive oil
salt
1. Combine beans, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and about a tablespoon of olive oil in a food processor or blender. Process or blend as appliance dictates.
2. Taste. Add olive oil to adjust consistency. Adjust salt and lemon juice to taste.
3. Spread on a plate, drizzle with a bit of olive oil, and garnish with lemon wedges. Serve with bread or pita, toasted if you feel like it.
Oooh…looks lovely! I still have to haul down my mom’s food processor from 1984 (hey, it still works) from a top shelf in my kitchen when I want to make dip…may be time to invest in one of these little beauties you speak of.
About 6 years ago, I bought one of these to “hold me over” until I could afford the big-sized Cuisinart. In those entire 6 years, I have needed the large one only one time – when hosting a party of 30 – and I easily borrowed it from a friend.
And this bean dip is one of my favorite ways to use it! It’s a great no-guilt dip for fresh veggies and keeps well in the fridge.
As with anything that contains beans, I’m definitely a fan.
However I have some comments. First of all, this is something that can be vastly improved with a couple pieces of cilantro, for those who are so inclined. I wouldn’t put it in the food processor… just chop it finely and mix it into the spread afterwards, or sprinkle over the top.
Second, for goodness’ sake, you can’t just equate cannellini, great white northern and navy beans. They’d all make good spread, but cannellini beans are your typical bean for this recipe with good reason: they are sweeter and don’t have the sharp taste of the other two. Also, navy beans may not be a great choice if you’re trying to make this without a food processor. They are some of the hardest beans around and you’ll have great difficulty smoothing out the graininess when you mash them. Of course, that’s also part of their charm. YVAN EHT NIOJ, as they say.
Finally, cannellini beans are some of the tootiest beans around. You can leach out the toot-causing compounds by a couple rounds of soaking the dry beans before you cook them, but it doesn’t work well if you want to use canned beans. I usually don’t bother, but then again, I live alone.
I make a similar spread, and use it as a sandwich spread in place of mayos or the like – it’s fantastic, especially with a good black bean or other veggie burger.
we serve something similar to this at the restaurant i work at, except i’m pretty sure they roast the garlic first. it’s good, but i eat wayyyy too much of it at work to ever consider making it at home.
This is a great post as bean spread is one of those things that you know must be easy to make but when it gets down to it you’re just nor sure what the best way to go about it is. I sometimes make something similar myself, and I’ve found that you can incorporate lots of flavors—dried herbs, spices, chile flakes, garlic, fennel seeds, etc—by slowly warming them in the olive oil you intend to mix with the beans. Once it’s hot, you cook for a few minutes to infuse, and then use the olive oil, strained or not, as in your recipe.
Sounds delicious. We had almost the exact same dip in Pompeii this summer – a friend of mine swears by this recipe and made it for a small dinner party-type thing one night. Sadly, after hearing about the dip for weeks, I wasn’t around to try it (can’t remember why, but I must’ve been nuts..), but I heard rave reviews. She roasted the garlic first, I believe, but I know a few garlic fanatics who’d be all for the raw garlic variety..!
Oooh…looks lovely! I still have to haul down my mom’s food processor from 1984 (hey, it still works) from a top shelf in my kitchen when I want to make dip…may be time to invest in one of these little beauties you speak of.
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