looking for a bowl of comfort? try these creamy sauce butter beans with polenta! they are in a creamy-veggie filled sauce and pair so well with soft, delicious polenta.

creamy saucy butter beans with polenta in a bowl with a spoon

the inspiration

I love butter beans and creamy sauce. So, I figured it would be best to combine the two. The butter beans when paired with the polenta make a complete meal that is filling and nourishing. These creamy saucy butter beans with polenta truly hit the spot on a cold night.

While the days are getting a bit brighter now we are still facing a lot of cold weather and snow, so I still want warming dinners. These creamy, saucy butter beans truly feel like a hug in a bowl.

The creamy sauce is made from a bunch of blended up vegetables to sneak in some extra nutrition and fiber too! Trust me, you are going to love these creamy saucy butter beans with polenta.

ingredients for creamy saucy butter beans with polenta

the ingredients

Butter Beans: of course the star of our creamy saucy butter beans are butter beans! You should be able to easily find butter beans however, if you can’t feel free to swap the for chickpeas, cannellini beans, or even navy beans.
Cashews: the cashews help to add creaminess to our sauce. If you can’t have nuts you can swap in a small piece of tofu of equal weight to the cashews or you can omit this part all together.
Tomato Puree: I like to use Mutti tomato passata. You can use any tomato puree or you can also use jarred sauce.
Bell Pepper: the bell pepper adds in tons of flavor, sweetness, and when blended helps to make the sauce thicker.
Onion: the onion of course also adds in lots of delicious flavor. You can use any onion you want, I just had a red onion to use up so that is what I went with.
Garlic: obviously, garlic is always a necessity. Just a few cloves kept whole can be thrown into the pan.
Non-Dairy Milk: feel free to use any non-dairy milk as long as it is unsweetened and unflavored. This will help to add creaminess to our sauce.
Polenta: the side dish of this recipe! Polenta is a delicious just cornmeal, so it is great if you are gluten free.
Salt: to add saltiness to our dish.

the sauce for the creamy saucy butter beans with polenta

making the sauce

For this recipe the sauce is easy to make but just requires a bit of time. To start it off you will sauté the onion, garlic, and bell pepper in oil for a few minutes. Then, you will add in the tomato passata, a little water, and the cashews.

Now, you will need to let this all cook over a low heat for about 20 minutes. This allows the flavors to develop and the cashews to soften. If you find that as the sauce cooks it becomes too dry you can always add in an extra splash of water.

Once everything has cooked and become sauce it will be time to blend. This is truly where the magic happens for making our creamy saucy butter beans! Blend the ingredients with some non-dairy milk for a delicious sauce.

what are butter beans?

Butter beans have really been having their time in the spotlight and to be honest, I love that for them. Butter beans are so delicious. They are large, beige, flat beans. Their taste is very neutral and the skin is soft and they almost melt in your mouth (hence the butter name).

Some people do have this question: are lima beans and butter beans the same thing?

So, you may be more familiar with lima beans and if you have ever seen them they look similar in shape and size however, lima beans are green. Butter beans are actually technically lima beans they are just picked much later in the maturation stage. So yes, butter beans are lima beans but they are older lima beans.

creamy saucy butter beans with polenta in a bowl

cooking the butter beans

Because we are using canned butter beans the process for cooking them is very easy! You will drain and rinse the butter beans. In the same pan you originally cooked the sauce you will add the butter beans right back in there!

Then, you will cover with the blended up sauce. I like to add in a little salt, nutritional yeast, and red pepper flakes. However, you can add in whatever you like but I do definitely recommend adding in salt.

I also like to fill my blender with a little bit of water (about ½ cup) swirl it around to get any remaining sauce from the blender. Pour it back into the pan and allow the beans to cook for 10 to 15 minutes over a medium low heat. This helps to soften the beans a bit more and make them flavorful.

polenta for the creamy saucy butter beans with polenta

what is polenta?

Polenta is one of my favorite things. I have shared quite a few polenta recipes over the years but it had been a little while since we’ve done something with polenta. So, I knew that polenta would be the perfect side dish for this recipe.

Polenta is an Italian dish that is made of boiled cornmeal (similar to grits). I like to use instant polenta, it will cook up very fast in about 5 minutes. Polenta is delicious and it is grain free so great if you can’t have gluten.

more cozy recipes

why you’ll love this recipe

These creamy sauce butter beans with polenta is truly a meal that is full of comfort while being wholesome. Beans are so good for us, so if you are looking to up your fiber and micronutrients this recipe is great for that.

I also think if you have picky eaters who don’t love to know they are eating vegetables this is a great way to sneak some extra ones in. You will also have plenty of leftovers from this meal and it tastes just as delicious the second day.