Dried Beans & Cassoulet

SCORN NOT G HUMBLE BEAN

BY JENNIFER C. LAVOIE LISA NICHOLS PHOTOS

Joy of Cooking describes dried beans as “Being rather on the dull side, but much like dull people respond readily to the right contacts. Do not scorn them.” The simple bean, when cooked to perfection, married with braised pork, cooked in the satisfying fat of silky duck confit, or mixed with earthy vegetables and splendid aromatics, becomes anything but boring!

So, if you’re ready to try the wild side of the humble bean and growing your own is not in your future, pop on over to Lapsley Orchards, a 200-acre gem of a farm nestled along the rolling hills in Pomfret, Connecticut, owned and operated by John and Patti Wolchesky. Not only can you purchase a selection of beans, but they sell an impressive amount of other fruits and vegetables that are all grown onsite.

John Wolchesky is a first-generation farmer and has been working the land for over 35 years. He’s soft-spoken, genial, and very proud of their farm and the work they do. For the first 30 years, the produce they grew was sold wholesale to grocery stores. Unfortunately, this kept John on the road and away from the farm and his family. So, he started selling his produce at the retail stand and to local restaurants. For the past five years, the Wolchesky family has offered a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) membership. “The community has always supported us, but with the CSA, members feel more involved.”

“Our members are a part of the farm as opposed to just a customer,” said John. “One of the fun things about selling directly to our customers is they thank you for what you do.” Like most farmers, John and Patti are doing what they love and are passionate about. They also take tremendous satisfaction and pride in serving their community. The farm has over 160 CSA members and the first shares are ready around the second week of July. John said that at the beginning

of the season it can be difficult to fill the box with something unique; lettuce can only be so exciting. So, to liven things up a bit at the beginning of the season, they fill the CSA boxes with mason jars full of dried beans, offering their members something fun and interesting.

When asked about what makes growing and harvesting dried beans different than other crops, John explained: “First thing that comes to mind is the storability of the product. Unlike other crops, where you have to harvest when ripe, you can plant a heavier harvest than pretty much any other crop because of the beans’ storability.”

This year John and Patti grew two types of beans: Midnight

Black Turtle Soup and French Horticultural, both used in a classic, rustic dish shared by Chef Ben Dubow from Bistro on Main. The French Horticultural bean pods are straight with splashes of crimson, and as the beans mature, they take on a cream-colored hue with the crimson colors swirled throughout the bean. The beans have a creamy, nutty flavor that holds up well in the cooking process.

Midnight Black Turtle Soup beans are about the size of pea beans. It has a deep, midnight black color and a thin skin that holds it texture well when cooked. Although petite, this bean has a creamy taste and mixes well with any aromatics you pair with it.

SIDE

NOTE: The Lapsley Orchard Farm stand is closed after December 23rd, but they will be at the Winter Farmers Market at Westfield, first and third Saturdays, 9-noon, January-March. 210 Main St., Danielson, CT 06239.

HOW TO GROW YOUR OWN DRY BEANS OR SHELL BEANS

Planting dry beans or shell beans is very similar to how you would plant green beans. Beans are a high-production plant that require a small amount of footage, but not a lot of fussing over. After growing to maturity, the beans are harvested in the fall when the pods have matured, and the leaves of the plant have dried and fallen. The rule of thumb is the depth of the planting is governed by the size of the seed. Plant the seeds about ½ to ¾ inches down, 12 inches apart, in double rows. John uses a plastic mulch layer to limit the contact of the seed pod with the ground, giving it a little buffer to shed water.

Unlike green beans, dried beans don’t have to be picked exactly when they are ripe; in fact, waiting a bit until at least most of the leaves have fallen and the pods are dried is best. Pull the plants from the roots and complete the drying on either a piece of plywood, or tarp. The moisture level of the pod can vary when harvested. If the pod feels a bit moist, continue drying, making sure to fully dry the beans. John’s been growing beans long enough now that he can tell how long the beans need to dry by simply eating them when they’re harvested.

When the pods are fully dried, the next step is threshing the plant to get the beans out of the pod. John suggests, if shucking the pods by hand, to run your thumb down the back of the vein and pull up and out. Other options are to hold several plants by the roots and bang back and forth inside a trash can, or fill a bag full of dry beans and step on them. Or you can do what John’s farmhands

do: put the plants in a burlap bag and run it over with a tractor. Now that’s ingenuity!

After the harvest, remember to save some of the beans to plant next year. Make sure the beans are thoroughly dried; otherwise they can get moldy. Store the beans in a location that is dry, dark, and cool for two weeks, then place the beans in paper envelopes. Remember to label your envelopes so next year you’ll know what beans you have. Dried beans from the store can be planted, too, but you may have less success with those as they may be too old to germinate, or some may be irradiated and won’t sprout. You can test the viability of the beans by layering several paper towels on top of each other and moistening with water. Spread 20 or so bean seeds on the paper towel, fold the towels in half, covering the seeds in moist layers. Put in a plastic bag in a warm area for one week and see which seeds sprout.

“Beans are a high-production plant that require a small amount of footage, but not a lot of fussing over.”

“Beans are a high-production plant that require a small amount of footage, but not a lot of fussing over.”

Our featured recipe is the cassoulet: a humble peasant dish of dried beans cooked with various sausages and preserved meats. We also offer two other recipes: Mexican Chicken Soup, from Patti Wolchesky, which features the Midnight Black Turtle Soup beans, and Ridgeway Baked Beans, an old family recipe that is dear to my heart. Patti makes the Mexican Chicken Soup several times during the winter because it’s one of the few ways she can get her kids to eat beans.

My mother always put a pot of Ridgeway Baked Beans in the oven to cook all day long when she would tackle wallpapering a room. At the end of a long day, her wallpapering and beans would be done about the same time. My mother learned this trick from her mother, and although I don’t wallpaper, I do still like to cook Granny Ridgeway’s bean recipe. This is a very basic recipe consisting of three types of beans (yellow eye, kidney, and lima beans), sugar, salt, and ground pepper. Though everyone in the family makes the beans, we all add our own twist to the dish. My mother likes to use salt pork, my Aunt Therese likes to use bacon and swap out the yellow eye beans for the pinto beans, and I like to add spicy mustard and a glug of our maple syrup.

The beans from Lapsley Orchards perfectly complement each other in the cassoulet; however, as Chef Dubow remarked, “The ethos of the dish is using whatever beans you’d like.” It is, after all, a rustic dish that lends itself to whatever you have on hand. The history of the dish squarely lands itself in the category of making do with what you have. The first cassoulet was a hearty stew that the peasants of the city of Castelnaudary created using whatever ingredients they had on hand to fortify the French troops under siege by the British during the Hundred Years War. The soldiers, with full bellies and fortified with beans, ousted the British and saved the city from occupation.

Though we were not fending off invaders in Chef Dubow’s kitchen, I fully appreciated the simplicity, ingenuity, and frugality of using what’s fresh and readily available. Chef Dubow used a whole chicken for this dish. He remarked that a good, organic chicken is economical and easy for most people to source. He cut the chicken up into 10 pieces and browned the chicken in a heavy Dutch oven, then added chicken sausage, duck bacon, mushrooms, and onions. He used his own chicken stock, and recommends making your own stock; however, good quality storebought chicken stock is fine. A chef’s tip is to add some unflavored gelatin to the dish if using store-bought stock; natural gelatin from the stock adds complexity and depth to the dish.

CHICKEN CASSOULET RECIPE: Chef Ben Dubow, Bistro on Main

This is a relatively quick version of a classic rustic French dish. Feel free to substitute duck or other meats for chicken in this dish. Note: beans need to be soaked 24 hours in advance. Yields 4-6 servings. Active time: 1 hour; total time: 3 hours (plus soaking).

INGREDIENTS

For the Chicken 1 whole roaster chicken, cut into 10 parts (standard 8-cut and then split the breast), or a pre-cut chicken or mixed chicken parts 1/4 cup olive oil Kosher salt and pepper

For Braised Beans 2 lbs. of high-quality dried beans; white flageolet beans are classic, but feel free to mix and match Water for soaking 2 quarts chicken stock or water 3 to 4 bay leaves 1 tbsp Herbs de Provence 2 cups diced onion 1 cup diced carrot 1 cup diced celery One 15 oz can of diced tomatoes, with juice 2 cups sliced mushrooms 1/4 cup minced garlic 2 cups white wine 8 oz bacon lardons (we use duck bacon) 8 oz chicken sausage, cut on the bias continued...

To Finish 2 tablespoons whole butter Chopped fresh herbs

INSTRUCTIONS

For the Chicken Season chicken parts with salt and pepper. Heat Dutch oven with olive oil. Brown chicken parts until well browned and beginning to cook, 5-10 min. Remove chicken from pot and reserve.

For Beans Soak the beans in water for about 24 hours. Remove from water and reserve.

Add the bacon lardons and sausage to the pot. Allow to cook and render for about 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic, onions, carrots and celery. Allow to sweat 4-5 minutes. Use wooden spoon to scrape up brown chicken bits. Add chopped tomatoes and

Add pre-soaked beans and stock. Add the chicken parts back in. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Cover and let cook on medium; simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.

After 45 minutes to an hour, stir and check doneness of beans. Taste the broth; salt and pepper as needed. Cover again and cook an additional hour on low simmer.

After simmering, check the beans and chicken. The chicken should be tender and fall off the bone easily; the beans should be creamy and cooked through.

Finish with the whole butter, by melting it into the stew.

Allow to cook longer if needed. Otherwise serve immediately, or cool properly and serve the next day (even better!). When serving, garnish with fresh chopped herbs or greens. Serve with crusty bread.

The beauty of a cassoulet is that you can substitute the meat, the fat and the vegetables for whatever you have on hand. You could use duck, rabbit, or lamb in lieu of the chicken; instead of chicken sausage you can use whatever sausage you’d like; for the fat, instead of the duck bacon, you can use pork bacon, or salt pork.

Chef Dubow added some “French stock,” aka

water –

he did this

because he didn’t want the chicken stock to overwhelm the dish. He added wine and some herbs and set the Dutch oven to simmer for 30 minutes. While traditionally the cassoulet takes time to make - with soaking the beans overnight - and most recipes will have you roasting and simmering all afternoon, the cassoulet that we made only took 30 minutes on the stove.

To soak the beans, first remove any small stones, shriveled or broken beans, and wash and soak the beans overnight. Then pour off the water and use fresh water for cooking. Soaking the beans helps to take out some of the indigestible starches that cause gas.

The beans simmered on the stove for 30 minutes, with the chef tasting the cassoulet often, and was soon ready for us to

sample. I was quite surprised that this modest dish would have the depth of flavor it did. The beans kept their texture and the combination of the meat, fats and herbs gave this dish a complex, hearty taste that would make you think it cooked all day long. Once the dish sat for another half hour, the beans softened up even more: perfection.

The key to the shorter cook time is the freshness of the dried beans. The beans had been freshly harvested at Lapsley Orchard the week before we made the dish, thus lending to the quick cooking time. When making this dish, it’s hard to know how fresh the beans are if you aren’t buying your dried beans from a farmer or farmers market. So, keep tasting your dish as it cooks, and know that older beans may take just a bit longer before your cassoulet is ready.

MEXICAN CHICKEN SOUP RECIPE: Patty Wolchesky, Lapsley Orchards

INGREDIENTS

Chicken from a roasted chicken 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 yellow onion, chopped 1 red bell pepper chopped 1 tablespoon garlic chopped Salt and black pepper to taste 1 tablespoon chili powder 1 tablespoon dried oregano 1 teaspoon ground smoked paprika 1 teaspoon dried ground cumin

64 ounces chicken broth 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes or fresh 1-1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn 2 cups softened black beans

TOPPINGS Cilantro Shredded cheese Tortilla chips Sour cream

INSTRUCTIONS

Sauté onion and red pepper in a large pot until very soft. Add garlic and sauté for two minutes. Add salt, black pepper, chili powder, oregano, smoked paprika, and cumin. Sauté for another minute.

Add all the rest of the ingredients except for the chicken. Simmer on medium-low heat for 30 minutes or more to allow all the flavors to develop. Add water, as needed, if soup gets too thick. Add shredded chicken and heat through. Garnish soup and enjoy. This soup is even better if made and refrigerated a day ahead of serving.

RIDGEWAY BAKED BEANS RECIPE: Jennifer C. LaVoie

INGREDIENTS ½ lb. yellow eye dried beans ¼ lb. kidney beans ¼ lb. small dried lima beans ¾ cup sugar 1-1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper ¼ lb. salt pork

INSTRUCTIONS Soak the beans together overnight. Drain with fresh water. Simmer for 2 hours. Drain beans in a bean pot; put an onion in the bottom. Put beans in the pot with the onion.

Cover with ¾ cups sugar, 1 ½ teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon ground pepper.

Add water to cover. Score ¼ lb. salt pork. Set on top of the beans.

Cook at 325 degrees for several hours. Keep tasting the beans as they cook to check for doneness. Add water if needed.

“The simple bean, when cooked to perfection, married with braised pork, cooked in the satisfying fat of silky duck confit, or mixed with earthy vegetables and splendid aromatics, becomes anything but boring!”