Eat, Drink, and Be Married (or Not)

Ilona is undergoing her second cataract surgery today, so while we’re crossing our fingers for her, you’re stuck with me again. But I have a tasty morsel suggestion to mitigate that bitter pill!

Before anyone starts getting ideas from the name of today’s recipe, let me clarify: I’m neither interested in, nor pushing the nuptial element. This is purely about surviving the cold rainy season through carbs and cream. Steps can be taken to avoid the lactose, but not really the calories. Whatever, my chins, my choice.

Marry Me, You Giant Bean

This is a spin on Marry Me Chicken, a dish said to be so good you’ll want to marry the chef (or at least consider joint taxes). The folks at Delish adapted the original from a Tuscan recipe, and then it was relentlessly TikTok’d into legend.

When I first tried my luck at the non-poultry version, I had in my possession a jar of Greek fasolia gigantes, but you don’t have to go that far. Regular butter beans (lima beans if you’re of the US persuasion) or even cannellini will do nicely. Size doesn’t matter, but it’s a pleasant surprise, as the saying goes.

Ingredients:

• 450 grams/ 16 oz of drained beans
• 2 shallots (or one small onion)
• 200 ml (1 cup) of vegetable broth
• 250 grams/1 cup double cream (heavy cream in the US). Substitute coconut cream if you want a vegan/dairy free version
• 3 good tablespoons of sundried tomato paste. Or about 40 grams of chopped sundried tomatoes
• 40 grams (half a cup) of grated parmesan
• Flavourings: sweet smoked paprika, rosemary, salt, pepper. Of course, you can riff here, and go closer to the OG Marry Me recipe with garlic and red pepper flakes, or experiment with thyme, basil, sage, lemon peel, chilli oil etc. Make it your own!
• Baby spinach (optional) – in the UK, one of those small salad bags the supermarkets annoy us with. In the US, about 3 cups. Remember it wilts down to nothing.

Slice the shallots and fry on medium heat for 5-10 minutes, until brown and soft, then stir in the flavourings and the sundried tomato paste and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add the beans and the broth and cook them uncovered for another 5 minutes. Crush some of the beans if you want it EVEN creamier. No one has the right to judge you or your cream needs.

Pour in the cream and the parmesan and watch it thicken, then take off the heat and stir in the spinach if you want it (or if you’re anemic and don’t have a choice).

And that’s it. My sourdough starter, Olivia Low-Gluten John, makes a very crusty loaf and I dove right in with a slice. Pure bliss. It also works as a very rich side, for those days when you scream into the void and the void doesn’t know what it wants for dinner either.

In the olden days it would probably be called a dish for women on the go, but I am very much a woman on the stay. Stay inside and be cosy.

Marrying always optional.