Seasonal recipe No 52: Pasta with broad beans and beurre blanc
As this week’s boxes contained the produce from the Camel CSA’s two rows of broad beans which were picked clean this morning, it’s perhaps the last chance for a broad bean recipe. This is from Sarah Raven’s Garden Cookbook. She recommends using tagliolini or fine spaghetti. Slightly fiddly recipe but the result is very tasty.
Serves 4
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 15 minutes
Ingredients
250g broad beans, shelled weight
350g tagliolini or fine spaghetti
75g fried pancetta or prosciutto
2 tbsp finely chopped summer savory or thyme, to serve
grated parmesan cheese, to serve
For the beurre blanc:
4 tbsp white wine
4 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 heaped tbsp finely chopped shallots
salt and black pepper
175g unsalted butter, cold and diced
Method
To make the beurre blanc, reduce the wine, vinegar, shallots, salt and pepper in a small saucepan until you have only a tablespoon of liquid left. Whisk in the cold butter bit by bit over a very low heat or using a bain-marie, until thick and creamy. Season. Keep it warm in a vacuum flask or bain marie.
Bring a pan of water to the boil. Cook the beans in the water for 4 minutes. Remove them, reserving some of the cooking liquid, and cool them quickly in a sieve under cold running water.
Pop some of the bright green beans out of their skin by pinching them with your thumb and forefinger; this adds a wonderful colour. Discard the skins and puree half the beans with a tablespoon of the cooking water.
Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until just al dente, leaving a tablespoon or two of cooking liquid in the pan. Add the bean puree, pancetta or prosciutto and the beurre blanc, and stir. Season carefully.
Lastly throw in the remaining beans and stir. Serve with summer savory or thyme and grated parmesan.
