Ayocote Bean & Mushroom Salad

Ayocote Bean & Mushroom Salad

Newsletter love, and a wintery bean salad made with gorgeous Rancho Gordo ayocote negro beans, and pan-fried hedgehog mushrooms. You get crunch from toasted almonds, and sweetness from dried figs which works nicely to offset the acid in the shallot vinaigrette. There's also some shredded kale involved. It's a good lunch salad, and you can make a good portion of it in advance.

Ingredients

    • shallot vinaigrette
    • 1/3 cup minced shallots
    • 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
    • 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
    • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • 1/2 pound sliced mushrooms
    • 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
    • 4 cups cooked black beans
    • 3 celery stalks, chopped
    • 1/3 cup sliced dried figs
    • 1/3 cup chopped toasted almonds
    • 1 big handful of shredded radicchio and/or kale
    • micro greens or chopped chives to finish

Directions

    1. Combine the shallots with the red wine vinegar in a small bowl. Allow to sit for ten minutes or so. Whisk in the salt, and olive oil. Taste and adjust if needed. If your vinaigrette is too harsh, add a small amount of honey or a sprinkling of sugar to take the edge off.
    2. In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, and salt, and cook, stirring a few times along the way, until the mushrooms take on color and release their water. About 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and gently fold the beans, celery, figs, and almonds into the skillet with the mushrooms. Pour the shallot vinaigrette over everything, add the shredded radicchio/kale, and toss before serving.