There’s nothing earth shattering about this bean salad.

It’s made with canned beans and a simple host of other pantry and fridge staples—

But with the unofficial start of summer just around the corner, I’m thinking you can certainly use a super simple, colorful and easy-to-transport summer salad that pretty much goes with just about any main dish and is even hearty enough to be the main dish for all the vegetarians and vegans out there.

At least I know I can.

After the isolation of last summer it feels so good to finally be able to plan bbq’s and picnics again where you need to feed a crew.

So without further ado, I present this humble little White Bean Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette. Let’s hear it for summer 2021!!!

White Bean Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette

Makes 6-8 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed

• Two 15-ounce cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

• 2 cups water

• Kosher salt

• 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar

• 1 shallot, minced

• 10 ounce container grape tomatoes, halved

• Handful of fresh parsley, chopped

• 1 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

• Black pepper

The Recipe

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil and the garlic in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until the garlic is golden but not brown, 2-3 minutes. Add in the beans, water and salt and a generous pinch of the salt and bring to a simmer. Then cover the pot and remove it from the heat. Let it sit covered for 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile add the shallot and sherry vinegar to a medium bowl and toss to combine. Let that sit for 20 minutes as well.

3. Drain the beans in a colander and remove and discard the garlic. Add the warm beans to the shallot mixture, as well as the tomatoes, parsley, chives and remaining 3 tablespoons oil and toss together gently. Taste and season with pepper and additional salt. Let sit for 10-15 minutes and serve at room temperature or cover and chill to serve later.

Enjoy!

Note: Recipe adapted from The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen. I subbed in tomatoes for the red pepper and tinkered with other proportions.