White Bean with Grilled Shrimp and Sausage

With a pantry full of different variety beans, I've been on the lookout for recipes that will show off those heirloom beans. What better place to find something amazing to cook, than on the site selling the beans? I liken this to something one of my wise friends once said when I complained about a doctored up to the point of almost inedible pumpkin pie recipe. "Libby's has a vested interest in you loving their recipe enough to keep buying those cans of filling. Why mess with what they've already figured out?" she asked me. Same principle applies here  - if anyone wants me to succeed at bean recipes, it's those folks at Rancho Gordo...hence their recipe for this dish.

Let's just start here - I love the humble food of beans and I can eat them just about any way, from plain to doctored up in all manner of fancy recipes. When I finished putting together this particular bowl of deliciousness, I couldn't stop eating the product of my labors. With the sausage, there's just enough of a tang to please the taste buds. I love every component of what goes into the recipe. It is one of those dishes where you can take delight in loading up your fork with just the right amount of shrimp, bean, sausage, and arugula to make for sheer joy at the resulting spoon of yummyness. Does anyone else rate recipes like that? Every bite is good, some are perfectly composed to produce a measured bit of perfection. And those are the ones that make you keep eating!

White Bean with Grilled Shrimp and Sausage
Recipe courtesy of Rancho Gordo Heirloom Beans

1 pound medium gulf white shrimp (shelled and de-veined)
1 cup dried Rancho Gordo white beans such as Alubia Blanca or Royal Corona
6 ounces Italian sausage (we use Caggiano from Sonoma)
1 Tbsp. garlic, chopped fine
1 yellow onion, diced fine
1 carrot, diced fine
2 small celery stalks, diced fine
1 Tbsp. butter
1 cup arugula
Salt and pepper, to taste
Extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup bean cooking liquid
Serves 4   (or one greedy, bean-loving cook)

Pre-soak the beans in 4 cups water overnight. Drain beans.
In a large pot, bring the beans up to a simmer in 4 cups of fresh, salted water (1 tablespoon). Cook until tender, let cool in liquid and reserve 1/2 cup cooking liquid.
In a sauté pan, render sausage in 1 tablespoon of oil, add onions, carrots, celery and garlic, and cook until tender. Add beans and the 1/2 cup cooking liquid until emulsified. Add butter and take off heat. When butter is melted, add arugula.
Meanwhile, salt and pepper shrimp. Drizzle with olive oil and grill on high heat about 2 minutes per side. Place bean and sausage mixture in bowl and top with grilled shrimp.