Braised butter beans with broccolini

At Bar Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., a platter of big, creamy butter beans is always on the menu, cooked simply with aromatics and topped with something highly seasonal, depending on the week and the chef Amelia Telč's mood. Here, the beans are paired with crisp, broiled broccolini with lemon juice and a bit of chile crisp on top, but feel free to switch things up. Telč has covered them with garlicky sautéed spigarello, smoked eggplant or olive tapenade.

Telč buys her dried butter beans from Iacopi Farms in Half Moon Bay, Calif., so seek out similar ones (see Tip) and make sure to soak them overnight and cook them until they're completely tender all the way through. -- Tejal RaoTime: 55 min, plus overnight soaking