Sausage, Bean and Corn Stew

The ingredients make this the perfect bridge between summer and fall cooking.

1 pound small white navy (pea) beans
7 cups cold water
1 teaspoon salt
6 coarsely ground sweet Italian sausages (about 1 1/2 pounds)
6 hot Italian sausages (about 1 pound)
1/2 cup water
2 onions (about 12 ounces), peeled and cut into 1-inch dice (2 cups)
2 carrots (about 6 ounces), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 1 cup)
1 1/2 cups sliced celery
3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced (about 1 1/2 tablespoons)
1 small jalapeno pepper, coarsely chopped, with seeds removed (1 teaspoon), optional
5 plum tomatoes (about 1 pound), cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2 1/2 cups), or the tomato ''lids'' and insides from the blackfish-stuffed tomatoes
3 sprigs fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
4 ears corn, kernels removed (3 cups)

• Wash the beans and remove and discard any damaged beans or pebbles. The beans do not need to be pre-soaked, provided they are started in cold water. Place them in a large saucepan and cover with the seven cups of cold water and the one teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and boil gently for 75 minutes. The beans should be just tender but still a bit firm.

• Meanwhile, prick the sweet and hot sausages (see note below) and place in one layer in a large saucepan. Add the half cup of water, cover, lower the heat to medium and cook about 20 minutes. By then the water should have almost completely evaporated and the sausages should be starting to sizzle in their own fat.

• Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic and optional hot pepper and continue cooking, covered, for another 10 minutes. Set aside.

• When the beans are cooked, drain, combine the sausage mixture with them and add the tomatoes and thyme. Cook together for another 15 minutes. By then the beans should be tender and the mixture just slightly soupy. (The dish can be prepared to this point the day before serving.) Set aside, ready to be reheated when needed.

• At serving time, bring the mixture to a boil on top of the stove or, if at the beach, on the grill. When boiling, add the corn kernels, return the mixture to the boil and serve.

Serves 6.

• NOTE:
  

The sausages can be left whole or cut into chunks before or after cooking.