Baked Cannelini Beans
This Italian Baked Cannelini Beans recipe is so good, made with onions, garlic, cannelini beans, rosemary and tomatoes! These cheesy white beans are a simple side dish full of flavor, delicious served with chicken, pork, beef, and a crowd pleaser with a juicy summer burger!
I love a good side dish of baked beans. And these tuscan baked beans are scrumptious on the side, or a weeknight meal, made with an Italian flare and very simple ingredients. Baked Cannelini Beans recipe only takes a quick trip to the pantry to gather all of the ingredients. Add your favorite cheese and herbs!
Baked Cannelini Beans
Do you keep cannelini beans stocked in your pantry, but you don’t really know what to do with them? Look no further than this amazing baked white beans in tomato sauce.
Why we love this recipe
- Delicious paired with hot crunchy bread and a fresh green salad!
- We love this white bean casserole, but you could also add in other ingredients like kale, noodles, and even roasted vegetables.
- It’s the perfect vegetarian dish to bring to a party.
- Serve as a main dish or a side dish.
- The leftovers are delicious served in a wrap for lunch.
Gather these ingredients
Here are the ingredients for this traditional Italian beans recipe:
- Onion + garlic
- Tomatoes: we use fire roasted tomatoes (you can get them at Trader Joe’s)
- Cheese: we use Parmesan and Fontina but you can mix it up
- Rosemary: fresh is the best, but optional to use dried leaves
- Cannelini beans: you can also use white Northern beans
Different, yet so tasty and fresh (we love rosemary!) We love to add a sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes for an extra pop of heat!
One reader (Jeffie) says: The rosemary, the fontina cheese and now the mushrooms make this an exceptional addition to our vegetarian life. Add a salad and crusty bread and it is amazing.
How do you make Baked Cannelini Beans?
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, and salt. Cook and stir until tender.
- Stir in tomatoes and rosemary. Bring to boiling; boil gently, uncovered, until slightly thickened.
- Stir in beans and half the Parmesan. Season to taste with crushed red pepper, salt, and black pepper. Transfer to a 2-qt. rectangular baking dish.
- Top with remaining Parmesan and the Fontina. Bake until begins to lightly brown around the edges.
- Sprinkle with additional rosemary before serving.
How do you serve Italian cheesy beans?
- You can serve this dish right out of the oven, nice and hot.
- Serve as a side with other Italian main dishes (it’s a nice vegetarian option for guests).
- Add sour cream, and other favorite toppings.
- Set out the red pepper flakes for an extra bit of heat.
This recipe is not your traditional way to serve baked beans! My pantry is stocked with all kinds of beans, but I never want to run out of cannelini. This has become one of our favorite dishes.
Bring it to your next potluck, or better yet, serve it as a side for a vegetarian option at your next Italian dinner party!
Tips and substitutions:
- Use any kind of white beans (like Great Northern).
- Regular canned tomatoes will work fine as a substitute for fire-roasted. You can even add a pinch of smoked paprika to make up for it.
- Mix up the cheese and add your favorite (Parmesan, etc.)
- Try fresh basil in the summertime, or thyme. Rosemary is great in the winter months.
- Makes a delicious side dish or a main dish (vegetarian). Serve with hot crunchy bread and a side salad.
- Make ahead and bake the next day.
- Take to a potluck.
More recipes to try with cannelini beans:
There are so many great recipes using these sweet, white beans, like this White Bean Cabbage Sausage Soup, or this Chicken White Bean Mozzarella Dip. Or if you are a chili lover, we love this Turkey Poblano White Bean Chili recipe! You may also want to try these BBQ Baked Beans.
Get the Recipe:
Baked Cannelini Beans
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup coarsely chopped yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 28 oz can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, undrained
- ¼ cup fresh rosemary leaves, coarsely chopped, plus additional for garnish
- 3 15 oz cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- ¾ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- Crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup cup shredded Fontina cheese
Equipment
- Large skillet (Everyone should have a cast iron skillet!)
- 2-quart Baking dish (I love a rectangular baking dish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Cook and stir for 5 minutes or until tender.
- Stir in tomatoes and rosemary. Bring to boiling; boil gently, uncovered, 5 minutes, or until slightly thickened.
- Stir in beans and half the Parmesan. Season to taste with crushed red pepper, salt, and black pepper. Transfer to a 2-qt. rectangular baking dish.
- Top with remaining Parmesan and the Fontina. Bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until beginning to lightly brown around the edges.
- Sprinkle with additional rosemary before serving.
Notes
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Very good addition to my pescatarian life style. I love beans for protein on days that I don’t eat fish so this new recipe is perfect. I’ve never had cannilini beans before so I was glad to be introduced!
So good! I used salsa instead of canned tomatoes and will defiantly make it again.
Beekeeper
Made this dish for guests and all raved about how tasty it was. The fire-roasted tomatoes gave a nice hint of smoky flavor.
These came out so good! The whole family loved them.
I just wonder if I could use dried rosemary instead of fresh. Thanks
Yes you can!
I made these beans, then I sat down with a huge chunk of crusty bread and enjoyed every mouthful of them – delicious!
My family loved this recipe. It was a nice change to my regular side dishes. So cheesy and delicious.
Quick and easy to make. Really tasty!
We made this for dinner and it was fantastic! Are you able to share the nutritional value(s) of the meal as we are trying to track our caloric and protein intakes. Thank you
So easy and good! I will make this again!!!
Made this tonight with a few changes due to what I had on hand. We are not vegan so I added a pound of hamburger. Instead of three cans of beans I did 2 cans (chili flavored) and added some chopped mushrooms. Did not have rosemary so used savory instead and regular grated cheddar cheese rather than fontina. Otherwise followed directions exactly and we all liked it. You can really be versatile with a recipe like this. Will make again.
This was delicious! Smelled so good while baking and tasted even better. So easy and it will become part of my regular rotation.
I have made this recipe twice now and it is really good. The first time I did it exactly and the second time I added 8 oz of mushrooms instead of the third can of beans. The rosemary, the fontina cheese and now the mushrooms make this an exceptional addition to our vegetarian life. Add a salad and crusty bread and it is amazing.
This was delicious! I was only making this for me and had one can of chickpeas that I used instead of 3 cannellini beans. I also used 1/4 teas of dried rosemary and added some defrosted veggies with the beans. I used less parm and an assorted variety I had in the refrigerator from Trader Joes. Anyways, I couldn’t stop eating it and kept saying this is SO good! Thank you!!!
Thank U for this delightful recipe. I do not like to cook and am a klutz in the kitchen, but even I can cook this healthy, delicious dish. Your thoughts about expanding our outreach to others I have turned into a meditation that I will pray each day, for in your words is a spark of The Divine: “What are ways to expand our outreach to friends, family and neighbors, as we struggle in this maddening, dangerous time of the virus? We long for greater friendships and spiritual communion. Let us pray to Almighty God for expanded minds and open, sensitive hearts filled with peace, gratitude, and compassionate love. AMEN” Respectfully submitted, Stephan of Arkansas
Cannelini beans are something I always have in the pantry but never really know what to do with them. Going to try these out.
This dish looks amazing! I think I will grill up some Italian Sausage links and make these beans this weekend! Thank you for sharing this recipe
What can I use instead of fire roasted tomatoes to still get a great flavor please. Don’t this we have this in South Africa…
You can use a can or chopped tomatoes.
Aimeekayp,
I just read this recipe and was wondering the same as I don’t always see fire roasted tomatoes in my grocery in Wisconsin. If it is the Smokey taste that adds a little something extra, I may try some Spanish paprika which has that flavor. Is that a spice you can get in South Africa? It comes in a sweet and a spicy variety and there are several brands available on Amazon here.
Judy
I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I used 2 cans of beans instead of 3 and added about 2 cups roasted asparagus and zucchini. I didn’t have fresh rosemary so I used 1/2 tbsp dried instead. I will be adding this one to the rotation!
This is so delicious and simple to make! I used my cast iron pan from stove top to oven. Rustic and filling vegetarian meal with a side salad. Will make this again and again!
Can dried rosemary be substituted for fresh? If so, how much would you suggest?
Yes! I’d use 1 tablespoon of dried rosemary.
Can i use the same skillet for the oven or do i have to transfer to the baking dish?
Sure! Yes, you can use the same skillet :)
I haven’t tried this but will soon. I love Italian, have lots of beans and tomatoes from last harvest. It’s a good mix of protein and veggies. We put up a lot of eggplant, too. I may add that in for an extra veggie boost. Thank you so much for sharing!!
Cannelini beans are one of our favorites. Definitely giving this a shot.
So, I totally messed up this recipe. I wanted to halve it, but didn’t want to waste a half can of beans, so I used 2 cans. I used the same amount of cheese as for the whole recipe, and we don’t have fire roasted crushed tomatoes here so I used diced. The rest of the dinner took longer to cook than it was supposed to, so it was in the oven for almost twice as long as the recipe stated. It was delicious! Thanks for a great, forgiving recipe. I will make this again.