Ingredients – the Beans

• ½ pound dried white beans (about 2 cups of cooked beans, or 1 15 oz. can)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small  onion cut into large chunks
• 1 stalk celery, cut into large chunks
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 sprig thyme (optional – but desirable – in these days of restricted shopping)

Instructions

1. THE NIGHT BEFORE pick through the beans to remove any stones. Rinse.
2. Put into a bowl, cover with water, and refrigerate overnight.
3. Drain the beans.
4. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion, celery and garlic and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes.  
5. Add the drained beans, bay leaves and thyme.  Cover with water by 2 inches.  Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until tender, 2- 2 ½ hours.    
6. Turn up the heat and cook until most of the water has evaporated.  
7. Remove from the heat.  Season with salt and pepper.

Ingredients – Slow-Braised Tomatoes

• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus approximately another ½ cup for roasting
• 1 large red onion, cut into ½-inch dice, or equivalent of a bunch of small onions
• 6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
• 2 pints ripe cherry tomatoes, if they’re large, cut in half or quarters
• 18 basil leaves
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ⅛ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
• 1-2 teaspoons sugar–depending on how sweet the tomatoes are

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 250°. 
2. Heat ¼ cup olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; add the basil leaves and hot red pepper flakes and stir well. 
3. Rinse and dry the tomatoes and put into a roasting pan with sides.  The pan should be large enough to hold the tomatoes in a single layer. If they won’t fit, use an additional roasting pan and more olive oil.  
4. Toss with a teaspoon of salt and 2 teaspoons sugar. 
5. Spoon the onion mixture over the tomatoes. Add enough additional olive oil to come halfway up the tomatoes, about ½ cup, depending on the size of the pan.
6. Roast until the tomatoes are tender, but not falling apart, about 2 hours. Stir once, gently, during the roasting. 
7. When cool, drain the juices from the tomatoes and put in a glass measuring cup.  Pour off as much oil as you can, about ½ cup, and reserve for the aioli.  Save the remaining juices to cook the clams.

Ingredients – Garlic Scape Aioli

• 1 garlic scape, if you can’t get them, use 1 or 2  garlic cloves
• 1 whole egg
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil–from the tomatoes if possible
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Remove the scraggly top from the scape.  Save for garnish.  
2. Cut the ropey part into ¼ -inch pieces.  You should have about 3 tablespoons. Use more if you like garlic!
3. Put the chopped scape into the blender with the  egg, lemon juice and mustard and puree.  
4. If you can’t get scapes, grate one or two cloves of garlic, depending on the size, into the blender with the egg mixture. Puree.
5. With the motor on,  and the little top off-set slightly, add the oils in a slow steady steam to the top to form an emulsion.  If you take the little black top off, the contents of the blender will spray up and out of the blender. 
6. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Ingredients – Littleneck Clams

• 32 littleneck clams
• 1 recipe slow braised tomatoes 
• 1 recipe cooked beans
• 1 recipe garlic scape aioli
• ¼  cup parsley leaves
• ¼  cup basil leaves

Instructions

1. Scrub the clams.  
2. Discard any clams that remain open when tapped.  They are dead.
3. Heat the reserved tomato juices  and beans together in a big pot. 
4. Add the clams, and 1 cup water, cover and cook over medium heat until the clams just start to open.  Add the tomatoes, cover and cook until they have opened completely.
5. You will probably have to take the clams out one by one and transfer to a bowl as they won’t all open at the same time.  Add additional water as needed.  
6. Discard any clams that don’t open.  They are dead.
7. Once all the clams are out of the pan, add the herbs, toss to combine.  Taste and adjust seasoning. 
8. Spoon some of the beans into the bottom of each bowl. Add the clams and spoon a little more of the bean mix over the clams.
9. Serve with aioli and crusty bread on the side.