Sauteed turnip greens and spinach with pancetta and cannellini beans over tomato fettuccine

One of the many perks of living in Chinatown is that we're right next door to Little Italy. And that means easy access to Italian cured meats and cheeses from Di Palo's (in their beautifully renovated and expanded new store!) and fresh pasta from Piemonte Ravioli, a store we just discovered on Saturday that makes their own delightfully flavored pasta. How could it have taken us so long??

This is a simple (almost) vegetarian meal that really showcases that flavors of good dry beans, fresh turnip greens (from our CSA), fresh pancetta and homemade tomato fettuccine. The spinach I used was frozen (it was all I had on hand) but I'm sure this would be fantastic with fresh spinach as well. It was also my first time making dry beans from scratch. How easy and what a big taste difference! Because I was making so few, I didn't even pre-soak them. Enjoy!

Sauteed turnip greens and spinach with pancetta and cannellini beans over tomato fettuccine

• 1/4 cup dry cannellini beans
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 bunch turnip greens (from about 4 turnips)
• 1 pound spinach, chopped (I used frozen)
• 1 pound fresh fettuccine (I used tomato, but use any flavor you prefer or even plain)
• 2 slices pancetta (mine was thickly cut and shaped like bacon)
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon sesame seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/2 cup Chardonnay or white Burgundy
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom, ground

Place beans in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until beans are tender, about 40 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Free turnip greens from the turnips and break in half. Rinse, then spin dry in a salad spinner, along with spinach.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add fettuccine. Cook until it rises to the top, then drain and set aside until greens are ready.

Halve pancetta slices lengthwise, then roughly chop. Saute in a large skillet over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add greens, cover and cook 6 minutes, stopping halfway through to give everything a good stir. Uncover and add beans, salt, sesame seeds and pepper. Cook another 2 minutes. Add wine and cook another 4 minutes, stirring, until it no longer tastes alcoholic. Add cardamom and cook a final 2 minutes. Toss with pasta. Enjoy!

Links to other turnip greens noshes:

• Creamed Turnip Greens from Andrea's Recipes
• Spaghetti Squash with Crispy Bacon and Turnip Greens from Cooking...by the seat of my pants!
• Baby Turnips and Greens in a Moghul-Style Sauce from She Spills the Beans
• Spicy Bok Choy and Turnip Greens with Garlic and Ginger from In My Box
• New Year's Turnip Greens by A Veggie Venture