I don't often read recipe books. I don't have any at home, but I read once a recipe for spinach and white bean soup and the writer described how the sharpness of the spinach contrasted with the creaminess of the beans. I liked that contrast: sharpness and creaminess. This was years ago, but it stuck in my mind and I always wanted to do a recipe with spinach and white beans amongst the ingredients.
Like many recipes, this one sort of happened by chance. It was a 'let's see what's in the fridge/cupboard' evening and we had fettuccine pasta and spinach as well as the usual staples like oil, flour, onions, garlic etc. I decided to do spinach pasta with a white sauce as there was also a wee bit of milk left. I was a little concerned that I didn't have enough of anything to make a filling meal so I had another root around, right in the back of the cupboard and found a can of white beans. Time to try it out at last, I thought. And the result was quite delicious.
The quantities given here are enough for three or four people. Cook about 90 -120g of pasta for each person (and it doesn't have to be fettuccine).
Ingredients
Pasta
A bunch of spinach
2 or 3 cloves of garlic
1 onion
About 250g of cooked white beans (an average can, drained)
A few crushed black peppercorns
1 tablespoon of flour
300-400g milk
A few black olives
Olive oil
Salt
Start by peeling the onions and garlic, rinsing the spinach, opening the can of beans and putting a pan of salted water on to boil for the pasta. Mix the flour well with a cup of milk, too. This way everything should be ready and to hand when needed.
Chop the onion and fry until it starts to turn a golden colour in places (add the pasta to the pan whenever the water starts boiling), then add chopped garlic and fry for a further 30 seconds or so before adding roughly chopped spinach. Cook for a few minutes until the spinach is soft then add what's left of the milk along with the beans and some salt (Check the pasta and if it's ready, drain the water off).
When the milk starts to boil, stir in the milk and flour mixture and continue stirring gently until the sauce thickens. It should only take a few minutes. Let the sauce bubble for a bit longer (if it seems too thick, thin it with a little hot water from the kettle), then remove from the heat and stir in the olives and crushed peppercorns.
Spread the pasta in shallow serving dish and pour over the sauce.
This dish is a meal in itself, but a as with any such dishes, a wee salad will add a finishing touch.