TEMPLATE (RECIPE) – Broad Bean Puree with Zucchini and Cherry Tomatoes

TEMPLATE (RECIPE) – Broad Bean Puree with Zucchini and Cherry Tomatoes


(Recipe by) Chef name
(Prep time)  30 Minutes
(Cook Time)  1.5 Hours
(Serves)  4


Some of my favourite dishes are versions of this puree. Called fava, it's made with yellow split peas in Greece. In Turkey and Italy, it's made with dried broad beans, as in this recipe. It has a sweet, earthy and subtle flavour. So it pairs well with acid and robust flavours like garlic. In the Puglian version fave e cicoria - they top the fava with bitter braised chicory. Add more lemon for a lift if the puree tastes too flat.

 

Ingredients

400g dried broad beans

1 brown onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 large potato, peeled and diced
1/2 lemon, juiced 
2 large zucchini, sliced on the diagonal 
2 punnets cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup passata
4 sprigs thyme 
1 tbsp red wine vinegar 
1/4 cup olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Mint or basil to garnish

Method

[01] Add the broad beans to a large pot with enough water to cover them well, and allow them to soak overnight.

[02] The next day, drain the beans and put them back in the pot. Add the potato and pour over  1.5L of cold water.

[03] Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Stir them every 10 minutes or so; as the broad beans break down, they'll stick to the bottom of the pot. They should take around 30 minutes to an hour to cook through.

[04] While that is happening, preheat your oven to 160°C. Slice the cherry tomatoes in half and place them in a baking dish.

[05] Coat the tomatoes in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt, pepper, one of the cloves of garlic and two sprigs of time, then bake for around 15 minutes or until they have lost some of their liquid and blistered slightly. Don't take them too far or the topping will be too dry.

[06] Slice the zucchini into rounds on the diagonal, then fry them in a frying pan in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil until golden.

[07] Once they're nearly done, add a clove of garlic, stir together, and then add the vinegar, passata and tomatoes.

[08] Simmer until the zucchini is tender, then take off the heat, stir through the herbs and season with extra oil, salt and pepper. 

[09] Once the broad beans have cooked through, you can mash them - I like to do this because I enjoy the rustic texture. Or alternatively, blitz them in a food processor. Season them with salt, olive oil and lemon juice as you do.

[10] Serve the broad beans in a dish topped with the zucchini mix, douse in olive oil and accompanied  with some crusty bread.