We found this tasty, unusual recipe in The Greek Vegetarian by Diane Kochilas. Arugula becomes milder when you cook it. When we made this dish, we added radish greens and used a mixture of canned chickpeas and black-eyed peas instead of dried navy beans. The recipe below is our adaptation of the original.
1/3 c. olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 c. chopped tomatoes
1 bunch of arugula, washed and chopped
Leaves from 1 bunch of radishes, washed and chopped
3 c. water
2 cans of beans, drained and rinsed
¼ c. sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
Salt to taste
In a medium stew pot or stock pot, heat the oil over medium heat and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until wilted, about 7 minutes.
Add the garlic to the onions and stir for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, arugula, radish greens and water. Cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 50 minutes. Check it a couple times while it’s cooking, adding more water if necessary.
Add the canned beans and simmer for another 10 minutes, or until everything is hot.
Remove from heat and adjust seasoning with salt (we used about ½ tsp) and vinegar. Serve warm or at room temperature. It’s good served over rice.