What you’ll need:
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2 fennel bulbs
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2 jars of good quality butter beans
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100g podded broad beans
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100g samphire
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For the salsa verde:
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100g mixed herbs (parsley, chive, coriander,
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basil and mint all work well together)
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1 garlic clove grated
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The zest of 1 lemon
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1 tbsp of capers rinsed
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100ml extra virgin olive oil
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Sea salt and cracked black pepper
Butter beans might not grow in Britain, but they’re still a really great source of fibre, protein and vitamins, and like all legumes, are wonderful for the soil too. Choose the best you can find – we love the Queen Butter Beans from Bold Bean Co. They’re a heritage variety that’s full of flavour and are jarred, rather than tinned, which involves slower cooking to preserve those nutrients.’
What to do:
- Begin with the salsa verde by adding all the ingredients to a blender and whizzing them up until they’re smooth.
- Taking the fennel bulbs and keeping their woody cores intact to help hold each piece together, slice them into quarters before coating in olive oil.
- Heat up a barbecue or griddle pan to a medium-high heat and place the fennel on the grill, cooking for about three–four minutes on each side until slightly charred and softened.
- Blanch the samphire and podded broad beans in boiling water for about two minutes, before draining and rinsing in cold water.
- Peel the broad beans of their tough outer skins and throw these away.
- Drain and rinse your butter beans. You can either gently warm them at this stage or serve them cold – either is fine because, from a jar or tin, they’re already cooked.
- Combine the butter beans, broad beans, samphire and a couple of tablespoons of the salsa verde together, then check the seasoning.
- To serve, simply pile the bean mixture onto a serving platter and top with the charred fennel. I like to slice a lemon in half and chargrill it flesh side down on the barbecue or griddle plan, and then add this at the end.