Cannellini beans are a wonderful hearty and healthy addition to all of your favourite dishes. With a wonderful, creamy texture that lends itself to purees and dips as well as a satisfying addition to soups, stews and other dishes.
Love legumes? Why not try our ideas with chickpeas, black bean recipes or lentil recipes?
How To Soak Legumes, Chickpeas, Lentils and Beans
Buying dried pulses in bulk is a great way to save money, but they do require a bit of prep before cooking. Soaking dried legumes and pulses is an essential step for creating delicious dishes featuring chickpeas, lentils, and beans.
And while, ideally, you should be soaking them for a few hours, our Test Kitchen have a nifty trick for speeding up the process if you’ve got a last minute dinner to get going – or you just forgot.
Soaking pulses
First pick over the beans, checking for stones or other foreign objects.
Add approximately three cups of cold water for every cup of beans and leave to soak for a minimum of eight hours and a maximum of 24 hours at room temperature.
Speedy soaking
If you’ve forgotten to soak your beans for a recipe, place them in a saucepan and cover with five cm of water. Slowly bring to the boil and boil for 10 minutes; remove from the heat, cover with a lid and leave to stand for one hour.
Once you’ve drained and rinsed your beans, they’re ready to use in your favourite dish.
Try this spiced vegetable, chickpea and ricotta salad, chilli beans with chimichurri or this hearty chickpea and vegetable gratin to make the most of your beautifully soaked pulses.
Too easy!
01
White bean, corn and avocado salad
White bean, corn and avocado salad
A healthy white bean, corn and avocado salad from Australian Women’s Weekly.
02
Tuna with olive and tomato butter, white bean mash and cavalo nero
Tuna with olive and tomato butter, white bean mash and cavalo nero
04
Ribollita soup
Cook up a big batch to reheat at work for a warming winter lunch option.
05
Greek pork skewers with crushed white beans
Greek pork skewers with crushed white beans
Cook up a storm in the kitchen tonight with these glorious Greek pork skewers with crushed white beans! Loaded with bags of flavour and texture – these are sure to be a hit!
06
White bean salad
A healthy, fast and easy white bean salad from Australian Women’s Weekly.
07
Slow-cooker chorizo, chilli and white bean stew
Slow-cooker chorizo, chilli and white bean stew
The unbeatable combination of salty chorizo and hearty white beans goes beautifully together in this warming slow-cooked stew.
08
Baked beans and tomato pots with rosemary sourdough crumble
Baked beans and tomato pots with rosemary sourdough crumble
Wake up and smell this delicious breakfast! Baked beans and tomato pots with rosemary sourdough crumble – full of filling, healthy ingredients to kick start your day. This recipe is suitable for diabetics.
09
Tomato and white bean puree salad
Tomato and white bean puree salad
Bright, colourful, tasty tomatoes with a lush white bean puree. Whip this up for your dinner party guests or as a light lunch. It’s ideal for diabetics.
10
Barbecued steak with white bean puree and chimichurri
Barbecued steak with white bean puree and chimichurri
Grilled tender steak with a tangy green South American sauce. Perfect for the warmer. And ideal for diabetics, too.
11
White bean dip
We used cannellini beans in this recipe but you could use any white bean you like. The lemon juice and zest add a delightfully fresh note to this moreish dip.
12
Italian chicken stew
Delight in this warming, hearty Italian inspired hotpot with juicy chicken, delicious vegies and plenty of filling, fibre-filled beans. The fennel adds a nice aniseed flavour, but is not overpowering.
14
Mashed white beans and zucchini
Mashed white beans and zucchini
This delicious and simple mash can be whipped up in no time at all.
16
Sausage and cannellini bean bake
Sausage and cannellini bean bake
A rich and delicious sausage and cannellini bean bake.
19
White minestrone
An Italian soup with fusilli, cannelini beans and parmesan cheese.
20
White bean, leek and garlic sausage soup
A delicious white bean, leek and garlic sausage soup with pistou that will warm you up and fill you up on a cold winters day. Especially if you’ve got plenty of good bread to dunk in it as you go.
22
White bean and chickpea soup with risoni
White bean and chickpea soup with risoni
A rich and hearty white bean and chickpea soup with risoni from Australian Women’s Weekly.
24
Cumin-spiced steak with white bean hummus
Cumin-spiced steak with white bean hummus
This white bean hummus recipe is the perfect accompaniment to a tender piece of cumin-spiced fillet steak.
25
White bean and merguez soup with gremolata
White bean and merguez soup with gremolata
Warm your soul with this deliciously comforting white bean and merguez soup with fresh gremolata – an easy, flavoursome dinner for the cooler nights!
28
Roasted tomato and white bean soup
Roasted tomato and white bean soup
Simple to prepare and rich in flavour this roasted tomato and white bean soup is ideal for a hearty weekday dinner or make a big batch for lunches.
29
White bean soup with polenta croutons
White bean soup with polenta croutons
An easy recipe to prepare in advance, this hearty Italian inspired bean soup with crispy polenta is simply mouth-watering and perfect to cosy up with on a cold day.
30
Beef, white bean and zucchini pizza
Beef, white bean and zucchini pizza
With a thin base and thin slices of zucchini, this is a crunchy pizza that combines simple yet stunning flavours for an easy and delicious meal.
31
Hearty lamb and white bean soup
This deliciously hearty lamb and white bean soup is full of iron, protein and all the goodness of fresh vegetables. It’s a meal in itself and perfect for cold winter nights.
33
Spicy prawns and white bean panzanella
Spicy prawns and white bean panzanella
A dish favoured for its simplicity that allows the flavours of good-quality ingredients to shine through.
34
Italian white bean and cabbage soup
Italian white bean and cabbage soup
This tasty bean vegetable and soup is beautiful topped with a piece of crisp proscuitto. It’s the perfect soup to warm your body and soul on those cooler winter evenings.
36
Pumpkin and white bean salad
This recipe used dried haricot beans; you can use two 400g cans cannellini beans instead. If using canned beans, delete step 1, and add the rinsed, drained canned beans to salad in step 5.
37
Lamb and white bean stew
An rich and aromatic stew of lamb, white bean, tomato and thyme.
38
Vegetable and white bean stew
This hearty vegie-packed stew is ideal for warming up on cold evenings. And with only three steps it’s incredibly easy aswell. Serve with crusty bread
40
White bean puree
Delicious as a dip, or served as a side alongside chargrilled meat or chicken, this white bean puree is lovely and garlicky. For a bit of colour, top with some thinly sliced green onions just before serving.
41
Tomato, capsicum and bean soup
Tomato, capsicum and bean soup
Winter comfort food has never been better with this effortless soup and irresistible garlic bread, filled with capsicum, tomatoes and beans.
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