Braised Courgette and Tomato Cannellini Beans, topped with a simple herby pistou tastes like a warm summer day. Get the recipe below.
Simple suppers
In this dish recipe braised courgettes and cherry tomatoes are added to hearty cannelini beans.
Its a filling meal that, thanks to the cannelini beans is packed full of protein which is perfect for anyone following a vegan diet.
It's also a really quick meal that you can easily whip up mid-week.
How to braise courgettes
"Braise" or "braising" is not a cooking term you come across all that often. But, braising the courgettes is an important step for this recipe.
Braising simply means using a mixture of "dry" heat and "wet" heat to cook something. In other words we fry the courgettes along with the cherry tomatoes in a pan on a high heat before finishing them off in the soupy pasta sauce.
How to cook beans
Cooking dried beans can be a real chore.
Now it's not essential to soak them first but you will find they cook quicker if you do.
Whether or not you've soaked them, all you need to do is add them to a large pan with cold water. Bring it to the boil and then simmer for 45 - 2 hours depending on the type of beans. It's a real labour of love.
If you've got one, it's easiest to make them in a pressure cooker but otherwise you can slave over the stove and cook them the old fashioned way.
Take away all the worry by using tinned beans that are already cooked.
How to make pistou
A pistou is a type of sauce traditionally made from basil, garlic, salt and olive oil. It's very similar to pesto - I like to think of it as pesto's French cousin.
It's also sometimes made with cheese, almonds, bread crumbs or potatoes but as we want to keep it thin enough to drizzle over our beans we're going to leave them out of this recipe.
To make the pistou is easy. Pistou translates to "pounded" so that's exactly what we do.
We peel and roughly chop the garlic, pound it together with the coarse sea salt in a pestle and mortar (or use a food processor as a speedier alternative). Ass in the basil and continue to pound/process. Then, drizzle in the olive oil until it's to your desired consistency.
I like to be able to spoon it over the dish. You can then stir it through just before you eat.
The recipe
Braised Courgette and Tomato Cannellini Beans with pictou
Ingredients
For the beans
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 white onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 courgette
- 150 g cherry tomatoes
- 350 ml vegetable stock
- 2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- 1 lemon zest and juice
- 240 g cannellini beans drained weight
For the pistou
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 bunch basil
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a lidded pan, add the onions and cook on a medium-low heat until the onions begin to soften.
- Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Next, add the courgettes and cherry tomatoes to the pan, cook on high for a minute or two until the courgettes start to get caramelised edges.
- Pour over the stock, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
- Next add the vinegar, lemon juice and beans and cook on low heat for another 10-15 minutes until the courgette has softened, the cherry tomatoes have burst and the beans are cooked through.
- Whilst the beans are cooking, in a pestle and mortar, make the pistou by pounding the basil herbs, garlic and salt the pour in the olive oil until it is a loose consistency.
- Serve the dish with the lemon zest stirred through and the pistou drizzled over the top.
Nutrition
More bean recipes
Love beans as much as I do? Here are 3 hearty bean dishes for you to add to your repertoire. Best of all, they're all vegan!
Do you enjoy beans as part of your plant based diet?
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