Giant Beans With Spinach, Tomatoes and Feta Recipe (2024)

I made a few modifications in the interest of ease:
Made a DOUBLE batch so I'd have plenty of leftovers to freeze!
Added washed baby spinach (2-1 pound bags) to the sautéed leeks and scallions. Stirred the cooked limas and canned tomatoes into the rest of the vegetables. Topped with all of the feta...couldn't see the point of making layers for such a soupy dish.

Delicious dish. I did not puree the tomatoes...just bought diced and enjoyed the little chunks of tomatoes with every bite. Had some rustic French bread to absorb the juices. I think this would also be good with lacinato kale. BTW, the picture provided doesn't look like it has any spinach in it so is not really representative of the final product.

I made a late in life discovery of pasatta which is already puréed tomatoes. So far, I’ve found it in Agatha & Valenta and Citarella. But I suspect it is also in any good Italian grocery. There is already so much equipment in this recipe, not having to use a blender to deal with the tomatoes is useful.

Delicious. Made it with canned Greek giant beans.

Very good, but the Lima beans took a lot longer than the recipe indicated to cook. Like others, I did not puree the tomatoes or cook the spinach separately.

Modification: I cook 1 lb of giant white beans (Rancho Gorda or Whole Foods) until done.Then put 4 c. water in deep pot, add 2 lbs. spinach and wilt. Drain and squeeze. Chop fine. Sauce 1 large onion and 4 garlic cloves in olive oil. Empty one large can whole tomatoes in large dish, emulsify with hand blender.Add one-half of the beans (spinach, onions and garlic and 1.5 c feta. Mix well. Put in casserole. (Sprinkle Parmesan on top if you wish) Bake in 300 oven for one hour. Perfect!!!!

Swapped in frozen greens, 2:1 kale to spinach and reduced dill a bit, and basically doubled the feta = good results. Would cook beans longer in stovetop step next time- they'll stay intact during oven baking, and would prefer not to have some still al dente after 90 minutes in the oven. Also, set those earthenware dishes on cookie sheets! Mine overflowed, even though they weren't filled to the brims and were covered in foil. Will add in some crushed red pepper next time.

This is one of the most delicious bean recipes in my collection. I use Rancho Gordo beans. I double the beans, leeks, garlic and feta and adjust the other ingredients. It’s a great dish to make on a Sunday and eat all week.

I used homemade unsalted chicken stock instead of water and doubled the dill because I’m nuts for it. I regret neither decision.

Forgot that I also added the chopped steamed spinach to the soup.

Modified for flavor: after beans were cooked I put in the baking dish with chicken broth, then in a food processor: 1.5c garlic chives, 1/2 onion, green onion, 5 cloves garlic and roughly pulsed. Sauted in a pan with olive oil and a bit of salt till soft and onions are slightly golden. Added to broth. To food processor: bunch of parsley and dill and roughly chopped. Added to broth. Added tomatos to food processor and chopped till it was a slightly chunky sauce. Olive oil, s/p, feta and baked

I made a late in life discovery of pasatta which is already puréed tomatoes. So far, I’ve found it in Agatha & Valenta and Citarella. But I suspect it is also in any good Italian grocery. There is already so much equipment in this recipe, not having to use a blender to deal with the tomatoes is useful.

This was delicious! In Greece we add quite a bit more oil (1/2-1 cup depending on taste). A squeeze of lemon really suits the dish, despite there being tomato!

Longtime staple. Beans should be soaked overnight, strained and fresh water used to boil, once water starts to boil dump the beans and use fresh water again. Ive never used the broth and wouldn’t- use a bit of vegetable stock - the beans only need to be covered and you get plenty of sauce. I loved the addition of spinach.

Made according to directions, for the most part. As the beans stayed tucked beneath the layer of tomatoes and feta, I added no additional bean broth once the pot went into the oven, but the finished casserole was not brothy. Next time I will either check the pot at longer intervals, or add a bit more broth at the outset.

Curious..this recipe calls for up to two lbs of spinach but theres no spinach in the picture provided..

Excellent recipe and it lends itself to variation (yea!). However:1) depending on beans, 2+ hours in oven may be needed for corona beans - 90 minutes wasn't enough2) my spouse said "the dill really is not a background flavor, is it?" so if you are dillophobic, cut it back!3) Robin is right - just add chopped spinach to leeks until it wilts4) next time I'll add a couple more garlic cloves before it goes into the oven.