Butter Bean Puree with Roasted Shallots
A thrifty recipe, which looks beautiful and can be served as part of a spread or as the main event.
Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
You’ll need
For the shallots:
400g round shallots, peeled
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
For the butter bean puree:
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tins of butter beans, drained and rinsed
100ml vegetable stock
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
For the salsa verde:
1 clove of garlic, peeled
25g of parsley
25g of basil
25g of mint
1 tsp capers
3 gherkins
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
8 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
What to do
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Toss most of the peeled shallots (reserving a couple for the bean puree) with the oil and seasoning in a baking tray. Place in the oven and cook for 25-30 minutes until soft and golden.
Finely chop the remaining shallots. Heat 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a medium saucepan, then add the finely chopped shallot and garlic. Fry until soft and translucent, then add the beans, stock and zest and juice of the lemon. Cook on a low heat until the beans are soft, then pour everything into a food processor and blitz until smooth. Taste and add more lemon or salt if needed.
Return the bean puree to the sauce pan and keep warm on a very low heat until the other components are ready.
Wash out the food processor then add all of the salsa verde ingredients and pulse to chunky paste.
To serve – spread a quarter of the white bean puree on each plate and top with the shallots. Drizzle each plate with a couple of tablespoons of salsa verde. Alternatively, serve on one big plate and let everyone tuck in with hunks of crusty bread.
Recipe courtesy of UK Shallot
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Melina - Assistant Editor
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