Flageolet Bean Salad with Pesto and Feta Cheese

Categories: Salads

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup dried flageolet beans or navy beans
• 6 cups cold water
• 2 stalks celery, halves crosswise
• 2 green onions, halved crosswise
• 2 sprigs fresh parsley
• 1 sprig fresh mint
• 1/2 cup packed fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 cups packed fresh parsley leaves
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. crumbled feta cheese
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 small clove garlic
• 1 cup sliced celery (2 stalks)
• 2 Tbsp. snipped fresh mint
• 1 tsp. snipped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Rinse beans; drain. In a medium saucepan combine beans and 3 cups of the water. Bring to boiling, reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover and let stand 1 hour. (Or place beans in water in saucepan. Cover and soak in a cool place overnight.) Drain and rinse beans.
2. Return beans to saucepan. Stir in the remaining 3 cups water, the halved celery, halved green onions, 2 sprigs parsley, an 1 sprig mint. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, 45 minutes or until beans are tender, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard vegetables and herbs. Drain beans, reserving 2 Tbsp. of the cooking liquid. Spread beans in a shallow dish; cover and chill at least 2 hour.
3. meanwhile, for pesto, in a blender or food processor combine the 1/2 cup mint, the 1/2 cup parsley, the oil, 1 Tbsp. of the cheese, the lemon juice, garlic, 1/4 tsp. coarse salt, and 1/8 tsp. black pepper. Cover and blend or process until smooth, adding enough of the reserved cooking liquid if needed to reach desired consistency.
4. In a large bowl, combine beans, pesto, the sliced celery, sliced green onion, and 1/8 tsp. coarse salt. Garnish with the remaining 1 Tbsp. cheese and the snipped mint and parsley.

5. per serving: 12g carbs, 116 cal.

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