What you’ll need:

• 2 fennel bulbs 

• 2 jars of good quality butter beans

• 100g podded broad beans 

• 100g samphire 

• For the salsa verde:

• 100g mixed herbs (parsley, chive, coriander,

• basil and mint all work well together)

• 1 garlic clove grated

• The zest of 1 lemon 

• 1 tbsp of capers rinsed

• 100ml extra virgin olive oil 

• 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:

1. Begin with the salsa verde by adding all the ingredients to a blender and whizzing them up until they’re smooth. 
2. 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. 
3. 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.  
4. Blanch the samphire and podded broad beans in boiling water for about two minutes, before draining and rinsing in cold water.  
5. Peel the broad beans of their tough outer skins and throw these away. 
6. 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.
7. Combine the butter beans, broad beans, samphire and a couple of tablespoons of the salsa verde together, then check the seasoning. 
8. 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.