When I want a small meal of bold flavors, I turn to beans.

Versatile, easy and delicious, they make a fabulous summer salad or, on chilly nights, a glorious soup. I like to keep local beans from the farmers markets in my summer pantry. They've been recently harvested and they cook more quickly than those that have been sitting in bags on the shelf, where they dry out.

The flavors of fresh, dried beans are more delicate, a tad sweeter and milder. Yes, I use canned beans in a pinch, but the texture of home-cooked beans makes them well worth the little extra prep time. Just an hour of gentle simmering is usually all it takes. Add a few aromatics (fresh herbs, onion, a carrot, a pinch of salt) and save the stock. Though it takes a bit of advance planning — you can't hurry the process — you can cook beans ahead and keep them in the refrigerator, ready to go for the next four days.

Beans are perfect for salads with peppery radishes, crisp fennel and sweet peas, all tumbled in fruity olive oil zapped with lemon. Showered with minced herbs and chopped olives, you can call it lunch. Add crostini, cheese and salami and it's light dinner. Unlike pasta that requires immediate attention once cooked, beans hold their shape, and the salads themselves taste better when the flavors have time to marry.

White beans are great in salads; they're a light, creamy match to crisp vegetables. Loaded with plant protein (about 15 grams per cup), they are a good source of fiber, vitamins and minerals. Plus, beans are nitrogen fixers, restoring nutrients to the soil in crop rotations.

Easy to make and portable to tote to picnics, barbecues or the backyard, beans are a super summer food.

Ashley Moyna Schwickert, For the Minnesota Star Tribune
Eat White Bean Salad alone for a filling lunch or with charcuterie for a light supper. Recipe by Beth Dooley.

White Bean Salad

Serves 4.

This is the kind of salad that moves through the summer season. Vary the veggies as the sun arcs across the sky — tender zucchini, crisp green beans, roast peppers, tomatoes, tomatoes and more tomatoes. Use a fruity olive oil and lots of lemon and whatever herbs you happen to have on hand. Serve with grilled chicken or fish or a plate of cured meats, cheese and crostini. From Beth Dooley.

  • ¼ c. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 tbsp. lemon juice, or more to taste
  • ½ tsp. coarse Dijon mustard
  • Coarse salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • ¼ c. diced radishes
  • ¼ c. diced fennel or celery
  • ¼ c. snap peas, plus a few split peas for garnish
  • ¼ c. diced pitted green olives
  • ¼ c. chopped fresh basil
  • 2 c. cooked or canned cannellini beans, white beans or black-eyed peas, drained (see directions below)

Directions

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard and a pinch of salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.

In a large bowl, toss together the radishes, fennel, peas, olives, basil and beans. Toss in the vinaigrette. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

To cook the beans: 1 pound of beans will yield 4 cups, which is twice as much as needed for this recipe, so plan to store them. Put the beans into a pot and add enough water to cover them by 4 inches. Add ½ an onion, a large carrot, 1 fennel or celery stalk, bay leaf, a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce the heat. Simmer the beans uncovered until tender, about 1 hour (depending on their age). Turn off the heat and allow the beans to cool completely, then transfer the beans and the broth to a container and store in the refrigerator for up to four days, or freeze. Use the broth for soups, stews, sauces, etc.

Beth Dooley is the author of "The Perennial Kitchen." Find her at bethdooleyskitchen.com.