Vegetarian Cassoulet

Photo: flickr user avlxyz

Ingredients

4 ounces shiitake mushrooms

8 ounces mushrooms

tablespoon olive oil

3 lrgs garlic cloves chopped

1 can diced tomatoes (14 ½-oz.) drained

2 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon dried thyme crumbled

1 tablespoon dried basil

1 pkt frozen pearl onions (10-oz.)

salt and pepper to taste

4 cups cooked white beans

cup bread crumbs

Preparation

Cut Shitake mushrooms into small pieces. Discard the stems. The white mushrooms should be halved.

Cook the beans.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large, heavy, nonreactive casserole over mediumheat. Stir in the garlic and saute for 10 seconds. Then add the tomatoes and cook 1 minute over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons water, Shitake mushrooms and the herbs. Stir and bring to a slow boil. Add the baby onions, white mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Stir the mixture and return to a boil. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Gently mix in the beans and

Heat the broiler. Spoon the mixture into a 9 or 10-cup casserole. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs. You may also sprinkle with 1 tablespoon oil. Broil about 1 minute or until the crumbs brown. WATCH CAREFULLY SO THIS DOES NOT BURN.

Originally

NOTES : Betsy Burtiss posted the original of this recipe a while back. I tried it with some modifications. The truth is, I had the dried beans and went shopping for the other ingredients without the recipe, so I didn't really know what to get. I did know the recipe called for wild mushrooms, but I didn't find such so used shitake.

In any case, my version was delicious, as I expect the original would have been also.