Dad's Christmas Beans

My father made some version of these beans every year for Christmas. He never followed a recipe and changed it up all of the time.  Luckily, he would sometimes ask me to make them and give me a general idea of how so I have turned it into a recipe.  His favorite was to use baby lima beans but they are often hard to find so small white beans were his second choice. In terms of sausage, he would often mix that up though his favorite was kielbasa. The most important aspect is the cooking order to get soft, creamy beans, The first part of the process keeps all acid and salt out until the beans have begun to soften.

Ingredients:

1 lb. baby lima or small white beans, rinsed
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp chicken "better than bouillon" paste
1 tsp paprika
Chicken stock
1/2 lb of fully cooked smoked sausage, diced
2 tbsp of tomato paste
3/4 cup of white wine
Salt & pepper to taste
Olive oil
Water

To quick soak the beans, cover in a pot with 6 cups of water. Bring to a rapid boil for 2 minutes and then allow to sit, uncovered for 1 hour. Then drain and continue with the recipe. 

In a large heavy bottom pot, heat a small amount of olive oil over medium heat.  Add the carrots, celery, and onions and stir occasionally for 5 minutes until softened.  Add the garlic and continue to cook for 2 more minutes. Add the beans to the pot and cover with water (usually about 6-8 cups) and add in the bay leaf. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and for 1 1/2 hours adding water if needed but only if the pot looks dry. You will add chicken stock later. 

While the beans are simmering, heat more olive oil in a large pan over medium heat and add the diced sausage.  Cook until the sausage has browned, draining excess oil if desired.  When the sausage is nicely browned, add the tomato paste to the pan and stir gently until combined with the sausage and the tomato paste has started to darken in color usually 2-5 minutes. Add the white wine and bring to a boil allowing the wine to cook until the mixture has thickened but has not returned to a paste state.  Add the sausage mixture to the pot along with the chicken bullion paste and chicken stock to make sure the beans have enough cooking liquid. Season lightly with salt. Simmer on low heat for at least another 30 minutes or until the beans have fully softened. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.