Butter beans, spinach, and extra virgin olive oil

Queen butter beans with greens

A simple, rapid-fire side or starter that'll make you feel so very continental. What was once "peasant food" is now a posh lifestyle choice—but it's always been delicious and nutritious. 

"Take a plate of beans cooked slowly with garlic, a slice of onion, and a few leafy greens, and put a healthy dollop of olive oil over, as generations of Mediterranean cooks have done down through the ages, and you have something close to a perfect meal. And one that's good for you, too, as modern generations of scientists are proving almost every day."
– Nancy Harmon Jenkins in her cookbook "Virgin Territory: Exploring the World of Olive Oil

 

Ever since we saw La Buvette in Paris do this dish, we can't quite shake it. It's a near perfect parcel of all the nutrition you need, while visually being surprisingly elegant. I mean, it's beans. But maybe that's just it. Our pals at Bold Bean Co have made us re-think how delicious (and important) beans should be. So here, taking inspiration from La Buvette and this season's hottest green, we give you a stunner of a starter or side to serve at your next dinner party.

(*Pssst. If you're signed up for our newsletter, we've got a cheeky discount for Bold Beans in our May edition.)

Here are the ingredients you'll need:

Serves 3-4 

  • A jar of Bold Bean Queen Butter Beans (now available at Waitrose)!
  • Citizens of Soil extra virgin olive oil
  • A bag of leafy spinach
  • Lemon zest from a whole lemon
  • Sea salt

Here's the method:

  • Add a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil to the pan and quickly add in your spinach to wilt.
  • Pop in the beans. They're ready to go, so pour over the spinach in the pan and heat. It only takes a few minutes, so once it's hot—spoon onto a plate.
  • Drizzle extra virgin olive oil so it pools around the beans.
  • Zest over some lemon.
  • Sprinkle some sea salt.
  • Get ready to mop up with bread.

Ways to make it more your own:

  • Throw in some sautéed garlic or onions.
  • Freshen it up with the lemon juice or a bit of pesto.
  • Crumble over some feta or diced ham to make it extra rich.

 

Are you making this? Share with your fellow citizens. Tag us in your photos on Instagram at @CitizensofSoil.

You may also like...

Fragrant Corn Chowder

Time to welcome the cosy season with a steaming bowl of goodness! This recipe comes to us from the 2023 Green Michelin Star winning restaurant championing all things seasonal and sustainable—Apricity in Mayfair. With this steaming bowl of chowder, their team says "Adieu!" to summer salads and welcomes the arrival of luscious, harvest-time dishes like this one. It will pair beautifully with any punchy extra virgin olive oil like our Spanish one or Croatian ones. Here's the method: Serves 3-4 ...


Don't Drizzle. Pour!: A Q&A with Johnny Madge

In the depths of early lockdown when we really couldn't leave our homes, I was desperate to taste and learn more about olive oils. We had our oil from Crete, and some others I'd been able to find in the UK, but I needed something extra... Enter Johnny Madge, an international judge and one of the leading olive oil "tasters" in the world (more on that later)—and one of the most passionate ones I've met to date. After a guided virtual tasting with a selections of oils he sent us from his favour...


The Ultimate Andalucían Travel Guide

Discover a more "tranquilo" approach to travel with our guide to Spain's sunny south. We're talking what to eat, where to go, and why you’ll love it... “Those who don't have too much of a plan are often the ones that have the best time. When some travellers get frustrated with the late eating hours or shops closing for siesta, I tell them to be a trout, not a salmon.” — Alexis Kerner, international olive oil judge and sommelier based in Sevilla. Andalucía beckons the curious traveller. Co...


@citizensofsoil

FOLLOW US
x