White Bean And Roasted Garlic Dip
My wife loves dips. (No wonder she married me.) We always have plenty of different kinds when we have people over--especially on Thanksgiving. This is one of our favorites, inspired by an appetizer at Del Porto, the excellent Northern Italian trattoria in Covington.
- 1/2 lb. cannellini (Great Northern) beans
- 1 quart chicken stock
- 2 small carrots
- 2 ribs celery, cut up
- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 head garlic, peeled
- 2 Tbs. olive oil
- 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 Tbs. salt
1. Sort the beans and soak overnight.
2. Put the beans in a pot with the chicken stock plus a quart of water. Add the carrots, celery, red pepper, bay leaf, and half the garlic. Bring the pot to a boil and lower to a simmer. Cook the beans for an hour, then cool for about 15 minutes. Add more water to the pot if the beans begin to look dry.
3. While the beans are cooking, heat the 2 Tbs. of olive oil in a saucepan over the lowest possible heat. Crush the reserved garlic cloves and add to the saucepan. Cook for about 30 minutes, stirring the garlic now and then. Do not allow the garlic to brown, although the color will get tan after awhile.
4. Remove the carrots and bay leaf from the beans, and drain the remaining water. Puree the beans in a food processor; it may be necessary to do this in batches.
5. Add the roasted garlic from the pan to the last batch in the food processor, along with the extra-virgin olive oil, vinegar and salt. Puree until smooth. If you pureed more than one batch of beans, combine them with this last batch and stir well in a bowl. Check seasonings, and add salt and Tabasco to taste.
Serve barely warm with pita chips. A nice garnish: anchovies or capers.
Serves 12-16.
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