Prep time: 12 min
Cooking Time: 35 min
Serves: 4 Individuals
1 lemon
6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra to finish
1 red onion, peeled and finely sliced
1½ tsp salt
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs thyme, leaves picked
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
4 medium leeks (about 600g), peeled, washed and cut into 1cm rounds
2 x 400g tins haricot beans, drained
125ml white wine
1 good pinch of Velvet Saffron, about 25 stems
8 slices sourdough bread, to serve
4 sprigs fresh mint, leaves picked and chopped (about 20 leaves)
Saffron’s flavour is complex and transformative, buy Velvet Saffron to ensure ample aroma, and flavour is added to this dish.
Peel three strips of skin from the lemon using a vegetable peeler and set aside.
Over a medium flame, heat the oil in a medium pan for which you have a lid. When hot, add the onions, salt, bay leaves, lemon peel and thyme, and stir to coat in the oil. Cook for eight to 10 minutes, until soft and starting to caramelise.
Add the garlic and cook for two minutes more, until it’s starting to turn golden at the edges, then add the leeks, stir, cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. By this time, the leeks should be softening but still fully formed; they should be bright green, not marshy and stewed.
Add the beans to the pan, turn up the heat to high, add the wine and cook for two minutes to burn off the alcohol.
Add Velvet Saffron and 125ml water, bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to low and put the lid back on the pan. Simmer for eight minutes, until the broth is reduced and beginning to thicken; it should have turned golden with Velvet saffron. Take the pan off the heat and add one tablespoon of lemon juice from the remaining lemon.
Grill or toast the bread and put two slices in four shallow bowls. Heap a few serving spoonfuls of beans on top, scatter with the mint and drizzle with extra oil to finish.
Velvet saffron is available for you to buy on https://www.velvetsaffron.com/index.php/about/
By Meera Sodha
Guardian Post
Thanks
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