Marry Me Butter Beans is a quick 20-minute vegetarian meal with Tuscan-inspired flavors, and an irresistible creamy sauce.
For more easy vegetarian meals check out our chickpea curry, vegetarian chili, and curry lentil soup.
Why you’ll love this recipe…
I (Nico) was skeptical about this recipe, but Louise insisted we cook it. As usual, she was right ๐โโ๏ธ.
This marry me butter beans recipe is so good and so easy you might want to have it on repeat.
Tender white beans simmer in a Tuscan-inspired sauce with olive oil, tomato paste, garlic, parmesan, cream, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes ๐คค.
Also, did I mention the dish comes together in 20 minutes in one skillet? What’s not to love?!
Served with a thick slice of toasted crusty bread, warm pita bread, or tender cornbread, they make the perfect weeknight dinner.
They are healthy, wholesome, affordable, and, best of all, delicious.
Ingredients
Find complete ingredient list, quantities, and substitutions in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
- Butter beans or lima beans: substitute cannellini beans, great northern beans, baby lima beans, chickpeas to make marry me chickpeas, or fried tofu to make marry me tofu.
- Olive oil: substitute another vegetable oil or butter/vegan butter.
- Heavy cream: we used reduced-fat heavy cream. Substitute non-dairy cream or cashew cream.
- Garlic: substitute a finely chopped onion.
- Spinach: substitute kale, roasted cauliflower, roasted broccoli, or roasted eggplant.
- Parmesan: substitute a non-dairy hard cheese.
- Sun-dried tomatoes in oil.
- Tomato paste
- Vegetable broth
- Basil and oregano: substitute parsley and thyme.
- Red pepper flakes: substitute a thinly sliced red chili, cayenne pepper, or anything else spicy.
- Lemon: we grate lemon zest on top top; it’s optional.
Variations
- CHICKPEAS: Substitute canned or cooked chickpeas for the butter beans to make a delicious marry me chickpeas.
- TOFU: Make the sauce without the beans, then at the end add our pan-fried tofu, baked tofu, or air fryer tofu to make marry me tofu.
- CAULIFLOWER: Enrich the recipe with delicious roasted cauliflower florets. Cook them in the oven while the sauce simmers then stir them in the sauce at the end.
How to make marry me butter beans
Step 1: Heat olive oil in a large skillet, add grated garlic and red pepper flakes, and sautรฉ 30 seconds. Stir in tomato paste and cook for a short minute until fragrant.
Add drained and rinsed butter beans, season with salt and black pepper and sautรฉ stirring for 1 minute.
Step 2: Add (deglaze) with vegetable broth and simmer for about 10 minutes.
You’ll see how the beans get tender and creamy as they release starch into the sauce.
Pour in heavy cream (or non-dairy cream), dried oregano, and chopped spinach, and let simmer a few more minutes until the spinach wilt and the dish is creamy.
Step 3: Turn the heat off then stir in chopped sun-dried tomatoes and grated parmesan cheese to taste.
Eat right off the skillet or serve on a slice of rustic crusty bread rubbed with garlic.
Top with more grated parmesan, fresh basil leaves, and grated lemon zest. Easy right?
Top Tip
Not all butterbeans are created equal! Louise and I cook with white beans often and have noticed that different brands of canned butterbeans vary in texture.
Some are naturally tender and need just 5โ10 minutes to warm through and soak up flavor.
Others are firmer and benefit from an extra 15โ20 minutes of simmering with a bit more broth to reach that perfect creamy texture.
The key? Taste as you cook and adjust the time as needed. Your butterbeans should be creamy, tender, and full of flavor when served.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can easily substitute heavy cream with a reduced-fat heavy cream, or, if you are vegan, you with a non-dairy heavy cream.
There are several options on the market made from soy, rice, cashews, and other ingredients.
If you want to make your own vegan cream at home I’d recommend making it with cashew nuts.
This is how I make it:
1) Soak 1 cup cashews in boiling water for 15 minutes.
2) Drain water, add cashews to a high-speed blender, add 3/4 cup water, and blend until creamy.
3) Season with lemon juice and salt to taste. Blend in more water for thinner cream.
You have three options:
1) Canned beans for a quick and easy dinner. Drain and rinse before use. That’s what we used in this recipe.
2) Dried beans that you previously soaked overnight and cooked in boiling water until tender (1 to 2 hours). Here’s our guide on how to cook white beans.
3) Frozen beans that you previously cooked in water as instructed on the package (about 30-45 minute).
Since our sauce is Tuscan-inspired and packed with comforting Italian flavors we recommend serving it with a slice of toasted crusty bread, optionally rubbed with garlic.
Other delicious serving ideas Louise and I tried and love are served on boiled rice, with pita bread, cornbread (this one’s so good), or tossed with some pasta.
This is a great recipe to make ahead and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. They taste even better the next day as the flavors have time to meld.
One tip when reheating is to add 2 to 4 tablespoons of water to get the sauce creamy. You can reheat them in a saucepan on the stove top or in the microwave.
More Easy Bean Recipes
If you tried this marry me butter beans recipe or any other recipe on our blog, please leave a ๐ star rating and let us know how it goes in the comments. We love hearing from you!
Marry Me Butter Beans
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- ยฝ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cans (15 oz each) butter beans or 3 cups cooked beans
- 1ยฝ cup vegetable broth
- ยฝ cup heavy cream or non-dairy cream
- ยฝ teaspoon dried oregano
- โ cup grated parmesan or more to taste
- ยฝ cup sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 cups spinach
- 1 handful basil leaves + lemon zest to garnish
- ยฝ teaspoon salt + black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet, add 2 cloves garlic (grated) and ยฝ teaspoon red pepper flakes, and sautรฉ 30 seconds. Stir in 3 tablespoons tomato paste and cook for a short minute until fragrant.Add 2 cans (15 oz each) butter beans (drained and rinsed), season with ยฝ teaspoon salt and 2 twists black pepper, and sautรฉ stirring for 1 minute.
- Add 1ยฝ cup vegetable broth and simmer for about 10 minutes.Youโll see how the beans get tender and creamy as they release starch into the sauce.Pour in ยฝ cup heavy cream, ยฝ teaspoon dried oregano, and 2 cups spinach, and let simmer a few more minutes until the spinach wilt and the dish is creamy.
- Turn the heat off then stir inยฝ cup sun-dried tomatoes (chopped) and โ cup grated parmesan.Enjoy right off the skillet or serve on a slice of rustic crusty bread rubbed with garlic.Top with more grated parmesan, 1 handful basil leaves, and grated lemon zest.
Video
Notes
- Butter beans: substitute cannellini beans, great northern beans, baby lima beans, chickpeas, or fried tofu.
- Olive oil: substitute another vegetable oil or butter.
- Heavy cream: substitute non-dairy cream from rice, soy, cashews, or other.
- Garlic: substitute finely chopped onion.
- Spinach: substitute kale, roasted cauliflower,ย roasted broccoli, orย roasted eggplant.
- Parmesan: substitute a non-dairy cheese.
- Basil and oregano: substitute parsley and thyme.
Nutrition
Hi! We are Nico & Louise
Welcome to The Plant-Based School, a food blog with vegetarian and vegan recipes.
We loved this recipe guys. The sauce is delicious and it reminds us of our trip to Italy back in the days. I added some extra Parmesan that I got from an Italian deli and my husband tossed in some grilled chicken for extra protein. He loved it! I really appreciated that it was so easy to make and follow. The ingredients in the recipe steps are SO handy!
Thank you so much for your message Ava. We are so happy you and your husband liked the recipe. It sounds like a tasty addition with the grilled chicken.
Have the best day.
Nico