Name: Flageolets with Autumn Greens and Fresh Bacon
Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients: 1/4 pound fresh bacon; 2 cups kosher salt mixed with 2 cups sugar; 2 cups dried flageolet beans, soaked overnight and drained; 1 carrot, halved; 1 onion, quartered; 1 whole head garlic, halved widthwise; 1/4 cup dried apricots, roughly chopped; 2 bay leaves; 1 dried ancho chile; About 2 tablespoons fino sherry vinegar; Salt; Freshly ground black pepper; A few leaves Tuscan kale; A few leaves black kale; A few leaves mustard greens; Good olive oil for drizzling

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Flageolets with Autumn Greens and Fresh BaconColin Clark

I love flageolets, the immature kidney beans that the French have been cultivating since the 1800s. They come in a variety of colors; I prefer the green ones, which are slightly firmer than a kidney bean, because they have a wonderful flavor and are really elegant in salads and stews. A little fresh bacon goes a long way toward making these beans remarkable. Curing it for a few hours in salt and sugar helps the bacon retain its flavor in the cooking process. For the greens, I like to use kale and mustard greens, but this dish is wonderful with any hearty green like dandelion greens or even cabbage. The pressure cooker helps to cook the beans easily and imparts all the wonderful porky-ness of the bacon.

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