Braised White Beans and Greens With Parmesan Recipe (2024)

Discarding those stalks from the chard is such a miss. Think of chard as two vegetables in one - the stalk and the leaf. Cut them out {fold the leaf in half lengthwise and cut along the length of stalk to free the stalk from the leaf} and dice the stalks, then add to the onions and fennel to sauté.

Celery or leeks are a good sub for fennel and given the way this recipe is made I'd go with leeks for a more mild flavor profile. Celery is better as a substitute for raw fennel.

Gosh. This is about the most delicious bean dish I've made. No: it's the most delicious using canned beans. Living alone I need a few ways to use up leftovers so here are my plans: 1) add more stock and turn into soup, 2) drain some in a sieve overnight in fridge and smash into a ciabatta bun for lunch, 3) reheat and serve with a poached egg and baguette toast points.

It’s not a NYT recipe until there are hundreds of readers posting their spin on it, but here I am..! Just had to mention how easy and efficient this meal was. Had almost every single ingredient chilling in the refrigerator (post-galentine’s day) - ALL I had to pay was 55p for a baguette! Added (here we go..) some bacon for a fat/protein element and went easy on the seasoning and cheese. The lemon juice tied it all together. Yet another go to recipe in my NYT archives.

Don't be afraid to use other greens; dandelion, turnip, beet, collard, arugula, and foraged wild greens (Lamb's quarters, purslane, sorrel, chickweed, etc.) in the spring. This recipe is descended from "la cucina povera," the no-waste, make use of limited resources, use what you have on hand, "poor cooking."

I've been making this dish for 30 years. I like to add a little Arugula in for flavor. Puree any leftovers, makes a great dip!

This was great! I used chard and omitted the mozzarella.This recipe doesn't make four servings unless you're feeding toddlers or supermodels. At my house it made two generous adult servings. Next time I'll double it.

Adding bacon for protein makes as much sense as adding extra salt for the iodine.

What could you sub in for fennel? My family and I don't care for it... Thank you!

Add lemon zest as well as the juice for extra flavor.

I loved that the recipe included fennel--cooking it changes the flavor from when it is raw--it was such a flavor enhancer. I had both kale and spinach, & added both, so we had 2 different greens--one substantial & one tender. My husband loved the contrast. I cooked up my own cannellini beans, rather than using canned & they kept their shape well. I added some preserved lemon because I didn't have any fresh lemons, and that really added great flavor. Will make again!

I love almost all NYT recipes but this is one of the best. Full of flavor and healthy. We didn't change a thing.

Delicious and easy. Wonderful lunch! I sautéed a little pancetta and sprinkled on top. Also chopped up some fennel fronds and added a shallot and some green onions. Skipped the mozz. in the soup. If you want, rub the bread with olive oil and garlic, toast, top with cheese and pop under broiler. Then float the cheesy toast in the soup. I’ll double the recipe next time.

Not sure why recipes call for discarding (or simply not using) the Swiss chard stems. They can be trimmed and diced and added with the fennel and onion. Or replace the fennel altogether. Great choice for a Meatless Monday, although it's screaming out for pancetta or bacon or sausage.

Made this vegan for my girlfriend. Subbed in red onion, dried Rosemary, great northern beans, and finished with white balsamic because I ran out of lemons. She said it was her in her top 5 things I’ve ever made for her. Easy and Italian inspired weeknight dinner or side. Loved!

Fantastic! Used leeks instead of fennel.

Add salt earlier add lemon zest with garlic, one can of beans is great, would add more other ingredients if doing two cans. No mozz just parm

Wow - i think this might be THE best recipe i’ve tried from NYT. Skipped mozzarella, cut up the stalks of rainbow chard same size as onion to use it all, cut off the rind from pecorino to cook with the broth and added some lemon juice straight to the dish at the end (half a lemon’s worth for a half batch). Grated pecorino on top - delicious! Not the biggest fan of veggies and trying to have more in my diet. This one won me over!

Didn’t have any fennel on hand so opted for shallots instead of the fennel and onion. I happened to have rhubarb and decided to throw it in after cooking down the greens (I used Kale). This was a delightful tangy addition. As a result, I chose not to incorporate any of the cheeses as I thought they might not play well with the tangy rhubarb. Inadvertently this resulted in a vegan recipe. I also added white wine which was lovely. Very happy with the result and will be making again soon.

This was much better than I thought it would be, delicious, really. I left out the fennel because it wasn't available where I happened to shop today, and also used regular white beans because cannellini weren't available either. The instructions were a little vague about the amount of greens. We had just finished cutting down all of our winter kale plants, so I ended up using a lot. Much more greens heavy than the picture, but it was quite tasty. I served it in a bowl with a piece of cornbread.

Everyone liked this. 3/25/24

Delicious! I recommend adding a couple Parmesan rinds for extra umami depth.

So delicious! Had a few other veggies to use up so in addition to the fennel and onion, added celery hearts and leeks. Only one can of beans and one cup of broth. Still made plenty for leftovers. Hit of lemon at the end really brightens it up. Used red kale for the greens.

I subbed leaks for fennel, used dried thyme, skipped the lemon, added mild chicken sausage, and added just a touch of dry sherry and it was delicious!

Not so much garlic. Ok, definitely needs bread with it

Skip mozzarella, double broth and greens

So simple, so delicious. (As per NYT tradition of riffing) I sizzled a little pancetta because I had it on hand and cooked the onion with the fat, and tossed in a bit of frozen parmesan broth I had made a while back—even with additions it came together in minutes and was stunningly tasty. As other reviewers have noted, the lemon really makes it—definitely feel free to add the zest too for an extra layer of flavor. This also keeps well: I just had some leftovers for lunch with a fried egg on top.

Try with thyme instead of rosemary. Made without the fennel and it needed something else, celery? Leek?

made 2x. great! and very great side dish for friends potluck dinners

This is unbelievably delicious...I made only a couple of minor changes. Yes, see below, why not dice the kale (or whatever) stems and add their nutritiousness? And I had on hand powerfully delicious fresh pork broth, so used it in lieu of chicken. Oh--and I used BOTH fresh rosemary and thyme (2 parts rosemary, 1 part thyme)...because--why not? I will SO make this again! (served with sweet Italian sausage alongside)