Ham And Bean Casserole

Total Time: 40 mins Preparation Time: 5 mins Cook Time: 35 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large cooking onion, diced
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 cups diced cooked ham
• 3 cups cooked pea beans
• 2 cups canned italian tomatoes or 2 cups mexican-style stewed tomatoes with jalapeno peppers, diced
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese or 1/4 cup romano cheese
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup grated provolone cheese (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon basil (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper (optional)

Recipe

• 1 in a nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium/high heat. sauté the onions and garlic until soft. remove from heat.
• 2 (note: if you are using italian stewed tomatoes, change the cheese to the provolone and add the basil & pepper. if you are using the mexican stew tomatoes stay with the cheddar cheese.).
• 3 in a large bowl, combine the garlic/onion mixture with the ham, beans, tomatoes, cheese, basil & pepper. spoon into a lightly greased 3 quart casserole dish.
• 4 combine 1 tbs olive oil, bread crumbs, parmesan and parsley and spoon evenly over casserole. bake in a preheated 350ºf oven for 30-40 minutes, or until topping is a light golden color.