- 1 onion
- 1 garlic clove
- A 400g tin of cannellini beans
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- 1 chilli
- A handful of chervil
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 bay leaf
- A handful of thyme, leaves only
- 1 tsp sumach
- A 200g punnet of portobello mushrooms
- 20g feta
- 225ml boiling water
- 2 tbsp cold water
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Colander
- Measuring jug
- Heavy-based casserole pan
- Foil
- 1.
Peel and dice the onion. Peel and roughly chop the garlic. Drain the cannellinni beans into a colander. Rinse well. Crumble the stock cube into a measuring jug. Add 225 ml boiling water. Stir.
- 2.
Heat a heavy-based pan. Add the onion with 2 tbsp cold water. Season. Cook on a low heat for 5 mins. Stir now and then till the onion looks soft.
- 3.
While the onion cooks, halve the chilli. Flick out the white bits and seeds for a milder flavour. Finely chop it. Roughly chop the chervil sprigs.
- 4.
Add the garlic to the onions. Cook and stir for 1 min. Reduce the heat. Measure out 1 tbsp tomato purée. Add it with 1 bay leaf, the cannellini beans, thyme sprigs, 1 tsp of the sumach and the stock.
- 5.
Pop a lid on the beans. Simmer for 5-10 mins to get a thick stew. Stir now and then. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Fish out the thyme sprigs.
- 6.
While the beans cook, wipe the mushrooms clean. Heat your grill to high. Brush the mushrooms with ¼ tbsp olive oil each. Grill them, smooth side up, for 3-4 mins till golden. Turn them over and grill for another 2-3 mins till browned and juicy.
- 7.
When the beans are ready, serve them heaped on the grilled mushrooms. Top each serving with half the crumbled feta, the chilli and the chervil.
- Tip
Life gets feta and feta
Wrap your leftover feta in cling film. It’ll keep well for 3-4 days in the fridge. Crumble it into salads, on top of soups or mash it with fresh herbs and garlic to make a jacket potato topping.