Janet’s Coteghino con I Fagiolini Scritti

Coteghino with Cranberry Beans
My paternal grandmother, Adelina Lancelotti--better known to us as Nonna Torre because she lived near Coit Tower in San Francisco--created this hearty dish. I remember her bringing it in a jar to my father’s store and heating it up on a hot plate for our lunch. This delicious stew of slices of coteghino and a mixture of Italian, lima and cranberry beans in a tomato sauce was always a treat to savor. I liked it enough that it was one of the first specialty dishes I attempted to make as a newlywed, almost 30 years ago. This recipe is my rendition of coteghino featuring cranberry beans only. It is best done at least a day or two ahead because the sauce thickens and the seasonings and flavors continue to blend. Though its preparation is time-consuming, the end result is worth the effort. This dish goes especially well with a glass of Cloverdale Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon. I hope you enjoy it as much as our family.– Janet Pellegrini

Sausage Preparation
1 Coteghino (3-inch in diameter, about 9-inches long. Available at Italian delis and Little City Meats in North Beach)
1 hot Italian sausage (optional)
1 Italian sausage (optional)
1. Soak the coteghino in cold water for at least 4 hours or overnight.
2. Put the coteghino in a stockpot and fill with cold water up to 1/3 of the pot’s rim. Cover and bring to a boil. Cook at a slow boil for 1 hour. (Do not puncture skin.)
3. Do the same for the sausage, but slow boil for only 30 minutes.
4. When cool, skin the coteghino and the sausage and set aside.

Bean Preparation
2 cups of fresh cranberry beans (plump, beige pods splotched with cranberry to pinkish     markings; seasonally available from August to November)
1. Shell the beans.
2. To reduce the beans’ hard-to-digest complex sugars, boil beans in a heavy bottom pot for 3 minutes. Cover and set aside for 2-4 hours. Drain and discard water. Rinse beans.
3. Cook the rinsed beans in a stockpot with cool water up to 1 inch above the beans. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt and pepper.
4. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce the heat, then cover and simmer for about 30 minutes or until tender (test by pinching a bean).
5. Make tomato sauce.
6. While sauce is simmering, add the skinned coteghino (cut in _) and the sausage.
7. Add cranberry beans to sauce and simmer for another half hour. Let cool and refrigerate.

Janet's Tomato Sauce
1 box or large can of tomato sauce
½ tsp. each of thyme, sage, and rosemary
1 small onion, chopped
1 russet potato, cut in 1-inch pieces
1 garlic clove, chopped
3 tbs. olive oil
2 tbs Italian parsley, chopped
1 cup Pellegrini Chardonnay
½ carrot, chopped
½ cup dried porcini mushrooms (soaked in hot water to soften)
2 stalks of celery, chopped

Next-Day Preparation
1. Before reheating, take out the coteghino and sausage and thinly slice.
2. Place the slices back into the bean dish and reheat over a low heat, stirring often. Add water if the bean dish is too thick.

Note: This recipe serves four. However, because of its day-ahead preparation, it is a good dish to serve to a large group. Increase the ingredients to accommodate the size of your group and enjoy the leftovers!