Description
A creamy, flavorful dish featuring sun dried tomato blended cashew sauce with tender butter beans and fresh spinach, perfect for a quick and nutritious meal served with crusty bread or grains.
Ingredients
Scale
Sauce Ingredients
- 3/4 cup raw cashews
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes plus more if desired
- 7-8 fresh basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups water plus more as needed
Main Ingredients
- 2 (15-ounce) cans butter beans drained and rinsed
- 2 cups baby spinach sliced
- Crusty bread for serving, optional
Instructions
- Soak the cashews: Bring 2-3 cups of water to a boil and pour it over the raw cashews. Let them soak for 5 minutes up to 1 hour to soften.
- Blend the sauce: Drain the soaked cashews then add them to a high-powered blender along with garlic, sun dried tomatoes, basil leaves, lemon juice, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, and water. Blend until the mixture becomes creamy and smooth.
- Cook sauce and beans: Pour the creamy sauce into a large skillet over medium heat. Add the drained and rinsed butter beans and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often. Add water if the sauce needs thinning.
- Stir in spinach and finish: Add the sliced baby spinach and additional sun dried tomatoes if desired. Cook until the spinach wilts and brightens in color, then remove from heat. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt or black pepper if needed.
- Serve: Serve the creamy butter beans and spinach mixture with crusty bread, rice, quinoa, or your favorite grain for dipping or alongside.
Notes
- Substitute sunflower seeds or raw slivered almonds for cashews, or use full fat coconut milk instead of water to adjust creaminess.
- Butter beans can be replaced with other white beans like great northern, navy beans, or chickpeas.
- Great for meal prep; store leftovers in covered containers in the refrigerator up to 4 days and reheat before serving.
- Serving with crusty bread is recommended, but grains also work well to soak up the sauce.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 250 kcal
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 500 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Protein: 10 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
