WHITE BEAN STEW, PARMIGIANO, CRISPY SAGE & RADICCHIO SALAD

an iconic trio: creamy beans, bitter leaves, crispy sage

Welcome to The Late Plate, where I share with you the recipes I am cooking at home in my warehouse. I live communally with six other people, which means we each pay £25 a week and collectively that pays for all of our weekly food costs. One person cooks dinner each night of the week for everyone else, so that every night of the week there is a delicious dinner that will feed us all. The food we eat is largely vegetarian, seasonal, healthy and affordable, and I can’t wait to share some of those recipes with you here!

And just like that it was November. We’ve glided through a wet and unnervingly warm October and are now entering that liminal period of time between Halloween and pre Christmas chaos. We must cherish these days, before the parties and the drinks and the festivities pile up and we all hurtle towards the holidays holding on for dear life. This week I’m sharing a favourite recipe of mine, showcasing the very best beans from Bold Bean Co. who have kindly shared a discount code to give you 20% off their Best Sellers Pack, so if you’d like to see what all the fuss is about, read on.

I’ll be publishing a very special interview with Amelia Christie Miller, founder of Bold Bean Co, for paid subscribers next week, along with a recipe from their debut cookbook. Until then, stay cosy, make this stew and let me know what you think in the comments. x

WHITE BEAN STEW, PARMIGIANO, CRISPY SAGE & RADICCHIO SALAD

This stew comes together in under an hour, but if you have time on your hands it certainly benefits from simmering away on the hob for longer. Something sort of magic happens and the flavour deepens to a level of umami I often dream about. You can make this vegan very easily by leaving out the parmesan, it can be gluten free without the breadcrumbs and you can equally amp up the flavour by adding a couple of anchovies at the beginning with the onions and garlic. It’s a versatile recipe and it’s been my go to lunch on a cold day when I want something warming and satiating that isn’t a bowl of pasta. I shared a recipe video which you can watch here!

Ingredients:

3 white onions, thinly sliced in half moons

2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1tsp sea salt

2 x 700g jars of white beans (here I have used butter beans and cannelini beans from Bold Bean Co.)

2 lemons

800ml vegetable stock 

50 ml white wine vinegar

A Parmesan rind (to keep it vegan omit this!)

1 tsp chilli flakes

100g stale bread (to keep it GF omit this!)

50g parmigiano reggiano (to keep it vegan omit this!)

A small bunch of sage

A head of radicchio 

A handful of roasted hazelnuts

A sprinkle of chilli flakes

1tbsp balsamic vinegar & olive oil to dress the salad

Crusty bread to serve. (to keep it GF omit this!)

Method:

• In a heavy bottomed pan, sweat the onions and garlic with the olive oil and sea salt. Cook for at least 15 minutes, until they have reduced and become jammy and translucent. I really mean it, 15 minutes, set an alarm. Season with a very generous grind of black pepper - we’re talking roughly 2 tsp.

• Add both jars of beans, along with their liquid, the juice of both lemons, vegetable stock, white wine vinegar and parmesan rind.

• Bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for 30 mins, stirring occasionally. You want the liquid to reduce and thicken.

• Meanwhile, blitz the stale bread to make breadcrumbs and fry in a little olive oil until golden brown and crisp. Set aside. 

• Fry the sage leaves in olive oil until crisp, drain on a kitchen towel and sprinkle with sea salt. Set aside. 

• To make the salad, simply toss the radicchio with the hazelnuts and a little balsamic vinegar, season with salt and pepper, plate and then drizzle with olive oil and scatter over some shavings of parmesan. 

• To finish the stew, scoop out two ladles, puree it and then add back into the pan, giving it a good stir. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary, maybe a little more vinegar, salt or pepper, depending on your taste.

• Serve the stew in shallow bowls, sprinkled with pangrattato, a few sage leaves and lots of Parmigiano Reggiano, a sprinkle of chilli flakes, alongside the salad and a hunk of crusty bread to scoop up the juices.

Use the code ROSIEK20 to get 20% off Bold Beans here.