White Bean

Clearly this is an Italian soup. Biete is Swiss chard, usually green, although I have a fondness for the drama and beefy taste of the red-stemmed kind.

(MINESTRA DI CAMPAGNA) Creativity with simple ingredients is one of the themes of Sicilian cooking. There's no better example than this bean and vegetable soup, which some say evolved from food that fifteenth-century galley cooks made for mariners. Serve an island dry red wine such as Corvo with this.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 30 min

In just minutes, you've got a sophisticated accompaniment to steak, lamb, grilled fish or roast chicken.

A terrific appetizer for parties.

Brandade, a specialty of Languedoc and Provence, inspired the following recipe. Also called brandade de morue ("ragout of cod"), it is classically a purée of salt cod, olive oil, and milk, often thickened with bread or potato. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

In this recipe we used fresh baby lima beans (the frozen ones are excellent, too), but you can substitute any other fresh young shell beans such as fava or cranberry beans.

The creamy soup would be great with large sesame-coated breadsticks and a spinach salad with marinated mushrooms. Baked apples and oatmeal-raisin cookies are nice after. This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This pretty soup could be a soothing lunch or a light dinner — and it's healthful, too. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

We've based this carbohydrate-rich, one-dish supper on the classic Spanish paella, mixing the lima beans (which stand in for the traditional rice) with tomatoes, chicken and a bit of ham.

For a low-fat entrèe, be sure to remove all visible fat and membrane from the veal shanks. Tie them to retain a nice shape.