This Tuscan-inspired butter beans recipe tosses canned butter beans in a rich and creamy sun dried tomato sauce. It’s incredibly comforting, healthy, and ready in just 20 minutes!
Transform more of the canned beans in your pantry with these Best Vegan Baked Beans, Easy Chickpea Curry, and White Bean Soup recipes!
You’ll never look at a can of butter beans the same way again after trying this rich and comforting butter beans recipe! It combines canned butter beans with a luxurious cashew cream, sun dried tomato, and Italian herb sauce that’s easy to make in a blender. Every bite tastes like it came from your favorite Italian restaurant, especially when scooped up with crusty bread!
There’s really no chopping at all required (except the optional slicing of baby spinach), so this is truly a ridiculously easy and incredible meal!
Why you’ll fall in love with this butter beans recipe
- Marry Me Butter Beans – Ever heard of Marry Me Chicken? This recipe is a play on that indulgent, creamy, and crave-worthy meal but uses non-dairy substitutes and canned butter beans instead of meat.
- Creamy and indulgent, but healthy – Every bite of this canned butter beans recipe is rich, creamy, and comforting. You won’t even notice that it’s loaded with plant-based protein and fiber!
- Incredibly comforting – Make sure you have plenty of crusty bread (maybe my Dutch Oven Bread?) on the side because you’ll want to scoop up every last drop of this heavenly comfort food.
How to make this vegan butter beans recipe
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
First, quickly soak the cashews in boiling water for 5 minutes.
Afterward, drain the water and add the cashews to a high-powered blender along with the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, basil leaves, lemon juice, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, and water. Blend until smooth and creamy.
Pour the sauce into a large skillet. Stir in the drained and rinsed butter beans, then heat over medium heat. Simmer the sun dried tomato sauce and beans, stirring often, until heated through.
For a thinner consistency, stir splashes of water into the sauce until it’s as thin as you like.
Lastly, stir the spinach and more sun dried tomatoes (optional) into the sauce. Cook until the spinach wilts, then serve the creamy butter beans in a bowl with crusty bread on the side for dipping. Enjoy!
For a truly impressive presentation, top the Tuscan butter beans with chopped fresh basil, a pinch of red pepper flakes, fresh parsley, and/or vegan parmesan cheese.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, butter beans and lima beans are the exact same thing! Depending on where you are in the world, the can of beans may be labeled “butter beans” or “lima beans”.
Sure. To cook dry butter beans, soak 1.5 cups of dried butter beans in water overnight and boil them in fresh water the next day until they’re tender.
You can swap the canned butter beans for 2 cans of another soft and creamy white bean, like cannellini beans, great northern beans, or navy beans. Even chickpeas work well!
I haven’t tested it, but you should be fine to use blanched slivered almonds instead of cashews in the sauce. For a nut-free alternative, experiment with raw sunflower seeds or 1 can of full-fat coconut milk instead (don’t use as much water with this option, just add water as need to the pan).
These creamy sun dried tomato butter beans are hearty enough to be served on their own, either by the spoonful or scooped up with fresh, crusty bread. I like it with a sliced baguette from the store or slices of my Dutch Oven Bread!
If you’d like to stretch the meal a bit further, spoon the beans over a bowl of pasta, cooked white or brown rice, or the whole grains of your choice. Include this Kale Caesar Salad on the side to round out every bite, and finish the meal with my Vegan Chocolate Cake for dessert!
Once the beans and sauce are cooled to room temperature, transfer them to an airtight container and store them in the fridge for 3 to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Thaw the leftovers overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Butter Beans Recipe
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup raw cashews*
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes plus more if desired
- 7-8 fresh basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups water + more as needed
- (2) 15-ounce cans butter beans drained and rinsed
- 2 cups baby spinach sliced
- crusty bread for serving, optional
Instructions
- Soak the cashews: Bring 2-3 cups of water to a boil (I use my tea kettle). Pour the hot water over the cashews and let soak for 5 minutes or up to an hour.
- Blend the sauce: Drain the cashews and add to a high powered blender, along with the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, basil leaves, lemon juice, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and water. Blend until creamy and smooth.
- Cook sauce and beans: Pour the creamy sauce into a large skillet. Add the drained and rinsed beans and simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring often. Add a little more water, if desired, for a thinner sauce.
- Stir in spinach and finish: Stir in the spinach and more sun dried tomatoes, if desired. Cook until the spinach wilts and is bright green. Remove from heat and taste, adding salt or black pepper as needed. Serve with crusty bread.
Notes
- You can substitute sunflower seeds or raw slivered almonds for the cashews, if needed. Or use a can of full fat coconut milk and omit the water (or use more as needed to thin the sauce).
- If you can’t find butter beans, this recipe works well with any kind of white beans – great northern, navy or chickpeas.
- I love to serve it with crusty bread for dipping, but it’s good over rice, quinoa or another grain as well.
- This is a great meal prep recipe! Store the leftovers in covered containers for up to 4 days. Reheat and serve.
What a gorgeous dish! That hint of lemon and basil hit the spot. Will make again and again.
Sounds delicious. However, I need to reduce nuts in my diet. Would silken tofu work in place of the nuts and if so, would you suggest any amendments to the rest of the recipe?
For a nut-free alternative, experiment with raw sunflower seeds or 1 can of full-fat coconut milk instead (don’t use as much water with this option, just add water as need to the pan). I think you will love the recipe! Happy cooking!
I made this exactly as directed… it was fantastic! Thank you so much for your easy to follow instructions, and sharing your recipes for free… you make it much easier to follow a Whole Foods plant based diet, and I’m so grateful!
Hi Chrysti. I am so happy that you enjoyed the recipe! It’s great to know that the instructions are easy to follow. I appreciate your awesome feedback, as well as your terrific review! Thank you for loving my recipes! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
This is a promising recipe. Very creamy. I blended it in my nutribullet. The sauce tasted amazing before I simmered it, but then seemed to lose so much flavour by the end. I added extra lemon juice after cooking. Next time I might add some chili powder.
My toddlers even loved this. I just waited to put the red pepper flakes in the blender till after I put some of the sauce in a smaller pot on the side for them. I also used butter beans in a glass jar rather than a can, which have softer skins. It was so good and so quick to make!
Just made this and WOW! So yummy. Had with some leftover bread and mini peppers for dipping. Also tried it with lupine beans…mashed them up a bit in the pan. Your recipes are amazing. Haven’t tried one I don’t like yet!
Hi Laura. I am thrilled to read that you are loving my recipes! This is a delicious one, for sure! Thanks for your terrific review and comments! I appreciate your support, and wish you happy cooking!
I was wondering if it would be alright to reuse the water that the cashews soaked in for the additional water used to blend the cashew sauce? We have well water and distilled all water for consumption, so I don’t like wasting water.
This is soooo good, it will be officially added to my lunch rotation. I used raw whole almonds (cashew allergy) that I blanched and peeled and then soaked for an hour. I also had leftover cherry tomatoes, so I dehydrated overnight and used them instead of sundried tomatoes. So amazing.
Hi Lisa. Thank you for sharing your recipe experience and ideas! I love the idea of dehydrated tomatoes in place of sun-dried tomatoes! I’m thrilled that you love the recipe, and I appreciate your stellar review! Happy cooking!
Wonderfully quick and simple recipe with a good dose of veg (and flexibility to add more). I did find the sauce to be a little “watery” in the base flavour, and less creamy than I would have liked. Adding a bit of soy milk and butter did help with this a little, but next time I’ll try with a vegan cream. Would appreciate any other suggestions 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
Did you use the cashew cream? That’s what makes it really creamy. 🙂
So good! Mine was a funny color as I used 20 g of basil (10 leaves, that apparently were bigger than average), but the taste is amazing! Currently waiting for the bread to cool so I can give it another taste test, but it’s definitely a winner!
Hi Tracey. I’m glad that you loved the recipe! Thank you for sharing your awesome review and feedback! Happy cooking!
My husband and I love this recipe! We eat it during football games.
Hi Steph. I’m thrilled that you and your husband are loving the recipe! Thank you for sharing your fantastic and fun review and feedback!
I love this dish! It’s in my regular rotation. Both of my kids ask for it which is a big win!
Hi Taryn, I agree if the kids asked for a certain meal, it’s a big hit! I’m thrilled that everyone is loving the recipe! Thank you for taking your time to share your inspiring feedback and glowing review! Happy cooking!