Fervent Foodie

Happy Monday, friends!  I have some exciting news to share today…  Drum roll, please!  Several of the photos I recently shot for Napa On Providence were featured in the March/April 2013 issue of Epicurean Charlotte Magazine!

Including the magazine cover itself:

I never in a million years thought I’d walk by a newsstand and see something I created on the cover of a magazine.  It’s simultaneously weird and exciting!  I have big aspirations for 2013, and this magazine cover has revitalized my desire to pursue new food outlets in the coming months.

Also in the magazine, next to my delicious looking bean photo, is the chef’s recipe for Napa’s white beans and sausage.  I haven’t cooked the beans myself, but I’ve eaten them, and they’re outstanding!

White Beans with Bacon and Sausage

Recipe by Chef John Medina

• 1 lb white beans, dry
• 2oz bacon
• 2oz butter, salted
• 4oz carrot, peeled and diced
• 7oz onion, diced
• 4oz celery, diced
• 1.5 tbsp garlic, chopped
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 quart water
• thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tbsp. black pepper
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1lb sausage

Soak white beans overnight (in just enough  water to cover).  The next day, julienne bacon and add to a hot pot.  Cook until crisp.  Add butter and melt.  Add carrot, onion, celery, and garlic, and add to pot.  Cook until onions are clear.  Add 1 quart chicken stock and 1 quart water.  Add thyme, bay leaf, 1/ tsp salt and pepper.  Cook 1 hour, until beans are soft.  After 1 hour, add 1 tsp salt.  (The beans are best if  made a day ahead.)

To serve, cook sausage in a sauté pan.  Break the sausage into crumbles.  Once cooked, add white beans, and shake pan to heat.  When beans are fully heated, serve.