Daniel's St Tola and Borlotti Bean Stew
I’ve had a new appreciation for St Tola having met Siobhan, the head cheesemaker at St Tola Dairy, on her latest visit to our offices. It’s a cheese that I’ve enjoyed getting to know since I joined the Wholesale Team at Neal’s Yard Dairy back in January. Meeting the person behind it and seeing her passion for preserving the heritage of the dairy that’s celebrated its 45th birthday this year, her commitment to doing what’s right for the environment, and also knowing how delicious it is, led to me buying a piece to take home from work. The discount on cheese is a real perk of the job…
I thought that the fresh creaminess of St Tola and its bright acidity would balance with the earthy, nutty flavours of some borlotti beans I had at home. I needed a quick mid-week meal and wanted to use up some fresh herbs I had left over in my fridge and it all came together. For something quickly cobbled together, this was a delicious meal that let the St Tola sing.
INGREDIENTS (for two portions)
For the beans:
1 400g tin of Borlotti Beans
3 cloves of (crushed) Garlic
1 Shallot (finely diced)
1 Carrot (roughly diced)
Parmesan Rind (I used Centosettanta)
Butter
To dress:
Handful Parsley
1 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
Juice of ½ Lemon
Olive Oil
For the Salsa Verde:
Carrot Tops
Handful of Parsley
Small Handful of Mint
1 tbsp Capers
Olive Oil
Juice of ½ Lemon
METHOD
On a gentle heat, warm a generous knob of butter in a shallow casserole dish or similar, and then add the shallots and carrots. Add salt and pepper. Sweat until soft and sweet and be careful not to let them colour. Add the garlic for the final minute or two. Next, tip the beans and their liquid from the tin into the pan and stir through until everything’s mixed. Add more water at this stage if necessary. I added a Centosettanta rind to the dish which imparted delicious savoury, umami flavours and a luxurious silky texture to the cooking liquid so recommend using a parmesan rind too if you have one. Increase the heat until it’s cooking at a lazy bubble.
Meanwhile, prepare your salsa verde. Roughly chop the carrot tops, herbs and capers. Loosen the mixture with a generous glug of olive oil. Add salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste. The salsa verde should be zingy and slightly punchy so season accordingly.
After about 15 minutes or so, your beans should be ready. They need to hold their texture but be soft to bite down on. Turn the casserole dish off the heat, remove the Centosettanta rind and mix the chopped parsley, vinegar and lemon juice in. Generously season. Leave the stand for 10 minutes while the flavours infuse.
To serve, plate up the beans then drizzle with olive oil and top the dish with sliced St Tola and salsa verde. The St Tola should yield slightly in the warmth of the dish and be totally delicious.