Artichoke Heart Salad

I suppose it’s time to get back to something healthy. (For now.) This salad was inspired by something a friend of mine bought at Whole Foods. I’m calling it a salad, but really, it’s best warm or at room temperature. Set it on top of a bed of spicy arugula or serve it next to chicken or fish and you’ve got yourself a meal. It’s loaded with flavor, and since the only carbs are beans, it’s got to be on the healthy radar. The flavors in this salad also remind me of the peppers, olives and scallions served on top of fried calamari at a great local Italian restaurant (Pizzico). So, if you’re so inclined to make that – I bet this would taste awesome with that.

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Artichoke Heart Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 - 14 oz. can quartered artichoke hearts
• 1 - 15.5 oz. can butter beans (these are essentially really large cannellini beans, the only brand I could locate was Goya), rinsed
• 1/2 cup sweet red peppers stored in vinegar, drained and thinly diced (these are found jarred, probably in your market's 'Italian' section)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup mixed large green and black olives, sliced
• 3-4 scallion chutes, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 4 tbsp olive oil, divided
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-low heat
2. Add in the scallions and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes
3. Next add in the peppers and artichoke hearts and saute for 2-3 minutes
4. Lastly, add in the beans, olives, vinegar and remaining olive oil and stir to combine
5. Allow the mixture to cool a bit and then taste it to see what kind of seasoning it needs (depending on which olives and peppers you use, you might not need to add much salt)
6. You can eat this right away or let it rest so the flavors can marinate for a bit before enjoying

Recipe inspired by Whole Foods