Pesto Beans
Published July 18, 2024
- Total Time
- 35 minutes
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
8 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup pine nuts or sliced almonds
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
Salt and pepper
3 large shallots, sliced thinly (about 2 cups)
5 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
2 (15.5-ounce) cans cannellini beans or other creamy white beans, drained
1 cup vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup finely grated Parmesan (about 4 ounces), plus more for serving
1 ½ cups tightly packed basil leaves, preferably Genovese
1 lemon, cut into wedges, for serving
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat 6 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-low in a 12-inch skillet or small Dutch oven. Add the pine nuts and, when the oil starts sizzling, stir occasionally until golden brown, about 5 minutes; turn off heat. Stir in the turmeric and season lightly with salt and pepper. Transfer to a small serving bowl.
- Step 2
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high in the same skillet. When warm, add the shallots and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring until just softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, and when sizzling (about 1 minute), stir in the beans and stock. Bring to a simmer then turn heat down to low.
- Step 3
In a few additions, sprinkle in the cheese, stirring vigorously to combine. When the cheese has melted into the broth and the mixture looks creamy, season to taste with salt and then turn off the heat. While the beans are still hot, tear the basil leaves (or roughly chop, if you prefer) and stir into the beans.
- Step 4
Serve hot, in bowls or on plates, drizzled with the sizzled nut oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and more black pepper and grated Parmesan, if desired.
Private Notes
Comments
This is absolutely delicious! I made a vegan version by leaving out the parm and I didn’t even miss it. I roasted a pint of grape tomatoes in the oven and then stirred them in at the end. It added a little more acidity and color. I highly recommend this recipe!
I didn't love this recipe as much as I thought I would. My biggest complaint and tip for anyone would be to use less oil. 6 tablespoons of oil was a lot for the pine nuts and tumeric sauce, I'd rather use half and dilute it with stock.
Even better if you make 1/2 cup or so of pesto and stir it in with everything else.
I only had one can of beans so I added some rigatoni to make up for it! The pasta water was a great addition and helped cut down on the oil. I also skipped the pine nuts; didn’t have any. Didn’t miss it!
Delicious, and the pine nut/turmeric oil is soooooooo good! Quick and easy but delivers great flavors!
Serve with crusty bread. I don’t have crusty bread. Because I didn’t see that in the ingredient list. So I didn’t buy crusty bread.

