Cilantro-Scented Navy Bean Mash
Smoked Salmon Rosette
Cook navy beans in chicken stock with smashed garlic cloves. Add cilantro sprigs for the last half hour of cooking. Let cool. Remove the sprigs and garlic.
Mash the beans with a potato masher, add salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Fold in crème fraîche and rough chopped cilantro leaves.
The Navy Bean is a mild-tasting, smaller-sized dense white bean that got its name from being a staple food for the US Navy, as they do not spoil and provide excellent nutrition.
Courtney of Chicago’s Coco Cooks blog is hosting this month’s My Legume Love Affair, a wildly successful event created by Susan, The Well-Seasoned Cook. April is its tenth incarnation, and one of which I am excited to participate in once again. Next month’s host will be yours truly, Taste With The Eyes.
Courtney’s challenge was to create a starter or dessert with legumes. For this party, I am serving a starter of cilantro-scented navy bean mash on spoons topped with a rosette of smoked salmon or a morsel of smoked trout.
My friends Heather and Abbi, stopped by during the creative stage. I served them the cilantro-scented navy bean dip with toast points brushed with olive oil. Cooking the beans with garlic cloves, stock, and cilantro imparts a wonderful depth of flavor to the beans. My vegetarian friends would love this too, just use a rich vegetable stock in place of chicken stock.
Another post, another thank you to my brother. This one, to my brother Don. You see, he waited in a not-so-short line last December to get an autographed cookbook by Charlie Trotter. Those of you who have been following Taste With The Eyes may recall that my birthday gift from Don & Kristy last year was Guest Chef For The Day in Charlie Trotter’s kitchen. I am a big fan of Charlie, and this cookbook, Home Cooking with Charlie Trotter, is a favorite; with casual recipes for the home chef, focusing on crisp flavors and straight-forward presentations. That’s where the idea for cilantro-scented navy beans came from!
Next up for MLLA 11, Three Bean and Potato Salad with Horseradish Vinaigrette, inspired by Charlie, too. Bean aficionados, won’t you please join us in May and share your favorite legume recipe?
23 comments • Filed in: Tasty
My mouth is watering…such a stunning image, I would never have thought to pair bean and fish…but the bean mash and smoked fish looks so amazing together!
Thanks for posting…
Have a wonderful Day,
Char.
That looks and sounds delicious! I might just have to try it myself.
Not only does this look good but it left me want to have some too!
This is absoulutely beautiful. I love the smoked fish atop. Wonderful entry for MLLA 10. Thank you.
I love legumes, but don’t eat them often enough, because the children do not really fancy them much!! This is quite a subtle bean dish that I am sure they will love!!!Thx for sharing!!!
Those starters look so elegant. I wish I had a taste of those.
I love this appetizer served on the Chinese soup spoons.
I always make a smoked trout appetizer, and I make a white bean with smoked salmon canape, but I like your presentation!
I will go out and buy these spoons!
Good for slurping!
This sounds absolutely delicious – I love the smoked salmon rosette!
Stunningly beautiful! I love beans and I love cilantro, so that bean mash sounds fabulous!
You’re one creative woman – in my wildst dreams I wouldn’t have put this together. Seeing it makes me wonder why. Your brother Bill is da bomb. First he helps in the kitchen and he gets you gifts that are dream gifts for any foodie.
I like the scent of cilantro-the salmon on mashed beans looks so fresh-must be tasty!
I could ’start’ and finnish with this. It’s beautiful and sounds oh-so-satisfying.
Beautiful dish! Some of my favorite ingredients are beans and cilantro. I lovo to cook with them.
Great recipe!
Erica.
What a creative appetizer , my mouth is watering . Love it
What is the beautiful combination of a bean mash with a smoked salmon. It sounds delicious!
This looks delicious and healthy!
Thanks for creating such a tasty, useful blog!
~Abby
Your brother is a gem! But he now needs to take his sis to Charlie Trotter’s, to meet Mr. Trotter himself!
wow… the way you played with all these flavors, just amazing!!!
Looks great Lori, the presentation is really cute! I always add a few garlic cloves when I make bean mash and it gives the mash a wonderful flavour. Will have to try adding cilantro the next time
.
Your photos are so gorgeous Lori Lynn, I can almost smell your dishes. I would make this minus the cilantro, can’t eat that!
♥ lori
I do remember the fantastic birthday gift you got last year and Don is clearly a sweetheart!
Scrumptious,
Cilantro, one of my favorite herbs -
I taste with my eyes,
lose myself in your images,
and go wildly hungry for your food!
I have to look into that cookbook.
Would you believe that I terribly miss this kind of American inventive cooking?
Pretty, pretty, pretty…and I can imagine how beautifully cilantro and smoke pair up.