Best Braised Fennel With White Bean Purée Recipes

BRAISED FENNEL AND WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Add fennel and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and edges are brown, about 10 minutes.
• Add beans, stock, chopped oregano, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has reduced by about half, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in vinegar and butter; remove from heat. Garnish with oregano leaves.

CREAMY WHITE BEAN AND FENNEL CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Trim the fennel. Cut it in half lengthwise and slice it crosswise, about 1/4-inch thick (reserve about 1/4 cup roughly chopped fennel fronds). Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium. Add the sliced fennel, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but still retaining a little bite, about 12 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Meanwhile, pour 1 can white beans and its liquid into a blender. Add the heavy cream, lemon juice and 2 tablespoons olive oil and purée until smooth. Drain and rinse the remaining can of beans and transfer it to the skillet along with the bean purée. Season generously with salt and pepper.
• Mix the panko with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a small bowl. Add the Parmesan, lemon zest and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and toss to coat. Sprinkle evenly over the fennel-white bean mixture.
• Bake until bubbly and lightly golden on top, about 15 minutes. Broil until topping is browned in spots, 1 to 2 minutes, if desired. Top with reserved fennel fronds and serve.

FENNEL PUREE

Steps:

• Trim the fennel bulbs of their stalks and bottom root. Halve the fennel lengthwise and slice each half into 1/4-inch thick slices. Peel the potato, halve, and thinly slice. Place the fennel, potatoes, garlic, chicken broth, and milk in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. If needed, add enough water to just cover the fennel. Bring the mixture to a simmer and continue cooking until the fennel and potatoes are soft, about 30 minutes.
• Drain the fennel mixture. Place the fennel mixture in a food processor and puree. If necessary, place half the mixture in the food processor, pulse to puree, and continue adding the fennel mixture until all the mixture fits in the processor. Continue processing until pureed. Add the mascarpone cheese, salt, and pepper. Mix to combine. Add the mint and process until just combined. Add more salt and pepper, to taste.
• Transfer the mixture to a serving dish. If the mixture is a little thin stir a few times and let rest for 5 minutes, then serve.

BRAISED FENNEL AND WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large heavy sauté pan over medium high heat. Add fennel and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and edges are brown, about 10 minutes.
• Add beans, stock, oregano, 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has reduced by about half, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in vinegar and butter; remove from heat.
• Garnish with additional oregano leaves to serve.

BRAISED FENNEL WITH WHITE BEAN PURéE

Steps:

• Prepare the bean purée: Add the beans, 2 1/2 cups Parmesan broth, garlic, salt and white pepper to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to an active simmer and cook 20 minutes, until there is only about 1/4 inch of broth covering the beans. Let cool slightly, then transfer to a blender and purée until smooth, creamy and spoonable. Set aside and cover to keep warm.
• Prepare the braised fennel: Slice the fennel in half lengthwise, and cut each half lengthwise into 3 equal wedges. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and the butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted, add the fennel wedges in a single layer, cut-side down. Sear until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook on the opposite cut side for 3 to 5 minutes. (If your fennel doesn't all fit in the pan, cook the remaining pieces with the shallots in the next step. Do not crowd the pan.) Transfer the cooked fennel to a plate.
• Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and cook the shallots on their flat side for 2 minutes. Flip and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes until they have a nice sear. Lower the heat if it starts to smoke.
• Return the fennel to the pan, season with kosher salt, sage and red-pepper flakes. Add 1 cup Parmesan broth, cover and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring once or twice and being sure to scrape the bottom of the pan, until the vegetables are just tender but cooked through. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.
• Divide the bean purée among shallow bowls, spreading it in an even layer, and season with another crack of white pepper. Top with braised vegetables and spoon the sauce over top. Garnish with tender fennel fronds and serve.

WHITE BEAN PURéE

Steps:

• Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add bacon; sauté until brown, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add carrot, onion and rosemary; sauté until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to high. Add cannellini and broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; cook until almost all liquid is absorbed, stirring often, about 20 minutes. Puree mixture in processor. Return to saucepan. Season with salt and pepper.

BRAISED FENNEL

Steps:

• Cut the green stalks from the top of the white fennel bulbs and cut the brown, round stump from the base. Cut fronds from stalks. Chop the fronds and set aside 2 tablespoons for serving. Cut bulbs in half 4 times, making 8 wedges out of each.
• Melt butter in a pan over medium heat. Add fennel wedges, flat-side down, and brown for 3 minutes. Flip and cook for about 2 minutes more. Add garlic and thyme and cook for 30 seconds. Add wine and deglaze the pot, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Let wine reduce by half. Pour in chicken broth and orange juice.
• Reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer until fennel is very tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Plate fennel. Sprinkle with salt and garnish with orange zest and fennel fronds.