Tuscan Bean Salad
Originally published in Quick Cooking January/February 2006, p20, http://www.tasteofhome.com/

2 cans (15 ounces each) white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 jar (6-1/2 ounces) marinated artichoke hearts, undrained
1 cup roasted sweet red peppers, cut into 1-inch strips
3/4 cup sliced ripe olives
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced

In a large salad bowl, combine the first 10 ingredients. Refrigerate for 20 minutes or until serving. Stir in basil. Serve with a slotted spoon.

Yield: 6 servings.

White Bean and Tuna Salad
from https://www.seriouseats.com/, Sasha Marx

This classic Italian salad marries cooked white beans and oil-packed tuna for a protein-packed, pantry-friendly, light meal that's perfect for warm weather.

Along with creamy, cooked white beans and rich, flaky oil-packed ventresca (tuna belly), this salad features bright and crisp sliced red onions, which are first soaked in ice water for a few minutes to temper their pungent bite and then quickly marinated with vinegar and salt to give them a quick-pickle pop of acidity.

The vinegar used to marinate the onions and the juice that the onions release in the process together form the base of the dressing for the salad. We round it out with a little bean cooking liquid, which acts as a flavorful emulsifier for the vinaigrette, fruity olive oil, chopped fresh parsley, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.

The salad is hearty but light (if you want to add extra greenery to the mix, it also pairs well with additions like peppery arugula or watercress), and requires only about five minutes of work, making it the perfect no-cook, quarantine-pantry, warm-weather meal.

FMM: I had problems making this recipe flavorful when I made it once. One reviewer cooked cannellini beans with celery, carrots, onions, the ribs from Swiss chard, sage, rosemary, thyme, and bay leaves to give them more flavor. This may have been what was missing when I made this before and, for the life of me, could not get any flavor into this salad (I think I used a different recipe, but not sure). Another reviewer said "For those of you who think it is bland, try halving the amount of beans," in other words make the salad so that there is more tuna. One person who commented said you need to use tuna in oil. Another said it should be imported tuna in oil from Italy. I have found with Tuna Noodle Casserole and Tuna and Peas on Toast that you need to use light tuna, not white, which has more flavor. I had probably used white when I made it. To add additional flavor, try adding capers, kalamata olives, marinated artichoke hearts, maybe some bell peppers. Perhaps the juice of a lemon and some roasted red peppers.

1/2 red onion (about 4 ounces; 116g), cut into 1/8-inch thick slices
1 tablespoon (15ml) Champagne, white wine, or red wine vinegar plus extra for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cups (1 pound 6 ounces; 625g) cooked dry white beans, drained, or two (15-ounce; 425g) cans low-sodium white beans, drained and rinsed [save 1 tablespoon of liquid from the can to use in place of bean cooking liquid]
5.6 ounces (160g) olive oil-packed tuna (from two 3.88-ounce (110g) cans), preferably ventresca (tuna belly), drained and gently flaked into 2-inch pieces
1 medium garlic clove (5g), minced or finely grated
1 tablespoon (15ml) bean cooking liquid, from a pot of beans cooked from dry (see note if using canned beans)
1/4 cup (60ml) extra-virgin olive oil plus extra for drizzling
1/4 cup (1/2 ounce; 16g) finely chopped fresh parsley leaves and tender stems

In a small bowl, combine red onion and enough ice water to cover. Using clean hands, gently scrunch and squeeze the onion slices, taking care not to crush or break them. Let onion slices sit in ice water for 15 minutes, then drain and discard ice water, and return red onion to now-empty bowl. Add vinegar and 1/4 teaspoon (1g) salt and toss and gently massage onions to evenly coat with vinegar and salt. Set aside for 5 minutes to allow onion slices to marinate.

Meanwhile, combine beans and tuna in a large bowl. Once onions have marinated for 5 minutes, squeeze onion slices to release moisture into the bowl that they marinated in, then transfer onion slices to large bowl with beans and tuna; set large bowl aside.

There should be at least 1 tablespoon (15ml) of vinegar-onion juice liquid left in the small bowl. Add garlic, bean cooking liquid (or, if using canned beans, 2 teaspoons (10ml) water plus 1 teaspoon (5ml) Dijon mustard) [I would use some of the liquid from the can], and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, and whisk to combine. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in olive oil. Stir in parsley and season to taste with salt.

Transfer dressing to large bowl with bean-tuna mixture, using a rubber spatula to scrape all of the dressing into the large bowl. Using a large spoon, gently toss salad to evenly coat with dressing, taking care not to crush tuna or beans in the process. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide salad between individual serving plates or one large serving platter, drizzle lightly with olive oil and a splash of vinegar, and serve.

Serves 4