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Lima bean and Swiss chard salad

Time1 hour
YieldsServes 8
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Large dried lima beans are a good base for this simple dish. When cooked, the beans have a rich, almost meaty taste to them and enough heft to make this a main-course salad.

Be sure to reserve some of the bean cooking liquid to make the dressing. With just a small amount of broth and good-quality olive oil, it’s lower in fat than some vinaigrettes and dressings.

The steamed carrots and Swiss chard give the salad a nice fall appearance, and it can be made a few hours ahead and kept at room temperature, covered, until ready to serve.

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Lima beans

1

Rinse the limas under running water, then place them in a 5-quart saucepot. Add the water, garlic, onion and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, partially covered, just until tender but not mushy, 40 to 50 minutes. Drain the beans, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water for the dressing. Remove the onion. Place the beans in a large bowl and set aside.

Salad

1

Steam the carrots in a covered steamer over boiling water until the carrots are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove them from the steamer and let cool to warm.

2

Remove the white center stalks from the chard. Cut the chard leaves into 2-inch pieces. Add them to the steamer and steam until the chard is wilted, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the chard from the steamer and let cool while preparing the rest of the salad.

3

Add the carrots and chard to the bowl of lima beans. Stir in the chopped onion, garlic, dill and 1 teaspoon of salt. Combine the olive oil, lemon juice, broth and 1/4 cup reserved bean cooking water. Pour the dressing over the beans. Lightly toss the salad just until the ingredients are mixed.