Gigantes beans

YIELD: serves 5-6

ACTIVE TIME: 10 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 2 hours 

Ingredients

• 1 pound Gigantes beans
• 1 jar of marinara sauce 
• 1 tbsp onion powder 
• 1 tbsp garlic powder 
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 1 tbsp thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 4 carrots peeled and sliced
• 2 sticks of celery sliced
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Soak the beans overnight, the longer, the better (12-14 hours).
2. Drain and rinse the beans and boil in water for about an hour, until they are soft but not mushy. 
3. Preheat the oven to 390oF. 
4. Prepare the sauce. In a pot put the olive oil and the marinara sauce. Add the spices, the carrots and celery and 2 cups of water and boil for 20 minutes until carrots and celery are soft. Add some more water if needed.  
5. Drain the beans and put them back into the pot, add the sauce and mix gently. Pour the mixture in a pan and spread evenly.
6. Bake for about 40- 50 minutes until beans are tender.