White Bean & Sausage Casserole with Panko–Herb Topping
Topped with a crunchy Panko/herb/lemon mixture, this White Bean & Sausage Casserole goes well with a green salad and crusty bread.
By Yankee Magazine|Jan 18 2016|
White Bean & Sausage casserole with panko–herb topping.
Photo Credit: Adrienne AndersonTopped with a crunchy panko/herb/lemon mixture, this White Bean & Sausage Casserole goes well with a green salad and crusty bread. Tender white cannellini beans are sautéed with a hot and sweet Italian-style sausage, tomatoes, fresh herbs, and sweet roasted garlic cloves.
Yield:
6 servings
Total Time:
45 minutes minutesHands-on Time:
45 minutes minutes
For the casserole:
Ingredients
6 large cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 sausages, 1 hot Italian and 1 sweet Italian
2 19-ounce cans cannellini (white kidney) beans, drained, washed under cold running water and drained again (see “Note,” below)
1 pound ripe tomatoes, cored and cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 cup dry white wine
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 325°. Place the garlic cloves in a small skillet or ovenproof dish and cover with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Roast until the cloves feel tender when pierced with a small, sharp knife, about 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool. Chop the cloves coarsely and reserve the oil.
Remove the sausages from their casings and crumble into a large skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring and breaking up the sausages, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the reserved garlic with its oil, the beans, the tomatoes, salt, pepper, thyme, and parsley, and cook 10 minutes over low heat. Raise the heat to high and add the wine; simmer 3 minutes. (This casserole can be made up to 24 hours ahead of time up to this point; cover the skillet and refrigerate until ready to bake.)
Preheat your oven to 400° and set a rack to the middle position. Make the topping.
Notes
To make this dish using dried beans, soak them in cold water overnight. Drain and place in a clean pot, cover with water, add salt and pepper and a bay leaf, and simmer over low heat until tender, 1 to 2 hours. Drain and use.
For the topping:
Ingredients
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
In a small bowl, mix the breadcrumbs, lemon zest, chives, salt, and oil.
Press the topping onto the beans and sausage. Cover the skillet with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until the juices are bubbling and the casserole is very hot, 10 to 15 minutes more.
