Antipasto White Bean Salad
I have been making this every few weeks - it's really easy. If you use dried beans it needs salt.
Antipasto White Bean Salad
Four 15-ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed,
(or 6 1/2 cups cooked white beans)
4 large stalks celery, cut into 1/4 - to 1/2 -inch cubes
4 ounces thin-sliced prosciutto, hard Italian salami and/or Italian ham,
cut into strips about 1/4 inch wide and 1 inch long
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
10 large basil leaves, cut into thin strips
Freshly ground black pepper
In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, adding pepper to taste.
Refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve.
Note:
To de-gas dried beans, put them in a pot, cover with water, bring to a boil. Off heat. Add 2 or 3 Tablespoons baking soda (slowly, stirring; if you leave it on heat it will bubble over and make a huge mess). Cover the beans, let soak overnight or longer. Then, DRAIN (don't skip this step or you will be really, really uncomfortable) the beans, rinse, wash the pot. Put beans back in the pot with fresh water to cover, bring to a boil, cook till done. Great Northern Beans maybe 15 -20 minutes. Drain and proceed with your recipe. This works for de-gassing all types of beans, though some may need longer cooking time.