Recipe: Summer Shelling Beans and Italian Sausages

• 2 lbs fresh shell beans in shell (yield 4 cups beans)
• 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 lb hot or sweet Italian sausage links
• 1 large sweet onion
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• Fresh bay leaf
• Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Shell beans, cover with water bring to boil, reduce heat, simmer partly covered until tender about 40 minutes. Add salt to taste and allow to cool in cooking liquid. May be made 1 to 2 days ahead and stored in refrigerator.

Using a kitchen scissors, cut raw sausages into 1- to 2-inch pieces. Brown them in a large skillet with a bit of the olive oil over medium heat. When the sausages are partially cooked, add sliced onion, garlic, and bay leaf and continue cooking until the onions are tender and golden and sausage cooked all the way through. Drain the beans reserving their cooking liquid. Add the beans and a little cooking liquid to the sausages. Cook on low heat until flavors are blended, at least 10 minutes, or longer, adding bean liquid, water, or chicken stock, if you have it, as needed.