Easy Cassoulet

Cassoulet is a 700 year old pork-and-bean casserole from France. Typically, it takes about 3 days to make this dish and there are lots of people who like to argue about the "right" way to make it. Last month's issue of Cooks Illustrated had a version of Cassoulet that took only an afternoon, but yesterday, I shortened even that recipe and I honestly think it turned out perfectly. The first time I made it I used garlic sausage and then yesterday I used chorizo. The chorizo was a huge improvement to the flavor. Really, this is one of the best things I have EVER made in the kitchen. I beg everyone to try it once!

2 cans cannellini beans (DO NOT SUBSTITUTE!), drained, and rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes
2 sausages NOT ITALIAN, first choice= pork chorizo, second choice= garlic pork, third choice=
brats
3 or 4 boneless pork ribs
1 rib celery
1 medium onion, diced evenly
3 carrots, diced evenly
4-6 garlic gloves, diced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 T. tomato paste
1-2 cups chicken broth
4 pieces of white sandwich bread
parsley, thyme, bay leaf, salt & pepper.
olive oil


-Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
-Put sausages, whole, into a pot of water and heat on high on stovetop until boiling. Boil 5 minutes then remove.
-Meanwhile, cut pork ribs into small pieces (1/2 inch cubes). Heat olive oil in a pan, until smoking, then throw in the pork rib pieces. Season with salt and pepper, and cook quickly over medium high heat. Before they are completely cooked through, scoop them out of the pan and into the dutch oven, or casserole dish that you will be using (choose a bigger one!).
-Add one can of beans (rinsed) the casserole dish.
-Cut one sausage into 1/2 inch thick circular pieces, and add to the dish.
-Saute the garlic, carrots, and onion in the same pan you used for the pork ribs until the onions are translucent. Pour over the pork, beans, and sausage in the casserole dish. Using that same frying pan (don't wash it between uses!!) combine the wine, chicken stock, some thyme, a bay leaf, and tomato paste and heat over medium.
-Meanwhile, add the can of tomatoes (drained) to the casserole dish.
-Cut up the other sausage and add to dish.
-Add the second can of beans (rinsed) to the dish.
-Once the stock/wine mixture is simmering, pour it over the casserole (which should basically be a layering of beans, meat, vegetables). Make sure the liquid covers most of the casserole.
jam 2 pieces of celery into the middle of the casserole and put a lid on it. Throw it in the oven for a few hours (1.5-2)
-Finally, 45 minutes before serving, uncover the casserole and turn the oven temperature up to 350 degrees.
-Then, using a food processor, pulse the bread and then separate into two bowls. Drizzle olive oil over the bread crumbs and stir with a fork. Pull out the casserole, cover the casserole with 1/2 of the bread crumbs. Return casserole to the oven for 15 minutes. Pull it out again, and then sprinkle it with the rest of the bread crumb mixture. Bake for another 15 minutes. Tadah! Let it cool, uncovered, for like 10-15 minutes. Really, it's amazing, and only gets better the next day.