Caper & Lemon Butter Beans with Fragata Black Olive Pangrattato

A comforting winter dish of caper-infused butter beans cooked in a smoky tomato sauce and finished with a hint of lemon, topped with black olive pangrattato (fried bread crumbs in Italian). It is a great way to use any stale bread you may have lying around and makes a tasty addition to pasta. The addition of black olives lends a salty tang, and the Fragata Hojiblanca olives are nice and large with just the right umami flavour to offset the creaminess of the beans. Delicious served with a loaf of crusty bread to mop up any juices.

Prep time 15 - 20 minutes

Cook Time 20 - 30 minutes

Difficulty Medium

Home » Recipes » Dinner » Caper & Lemon Butter Beans with Fragata Black Olive Pangrattato

Ingredients

For the pangrattato 150 grams / 2 thick slices stale homemade bread such as sourdough

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

12 x Fragata Hojiblanca Extra Large Black Olives

1-2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

¾ teaspoon sea salt

For the beans 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, finely diced

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

2 tablespoons Fragata Capers

2 –3 large cloves garlic

2 tablespoons smoked paprika

Large handful of Italian parsley, stems separated and finely chopped, tops roughly chopped

4 cups cooked butter beans, OR 3 x 400 gram tins of drained, rinsed butter beans

Method

Begin by making the pangrattato. Cut the bread into rough chunks and place into a food processor. Blitz until a nice breadcrumb consistency is achieved. Finely chop the black olives and parsley, and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a frypan and add the breadcrumbs, stirring to coat. Toast for 4 minutes, stirring continuously until the crumbs are lightly browned. Add the olives and parsley and continue to toast for another 3-4 minutes, or until the pangrattato is coloured to your liking.

Remove from the heat and add the salt, tasting and adding more if required. Tip the pangrattato into a tray and spread into a thin layer – this will stop the crumbs from toasting and ensure it all cools evenly and becomes crunchy. Set aside while you make the beans.

Heat the second measure of olive oil in a wide, shallow pan and gently sauté the onions and cumin together with a large pinch of sea salt for 3 minutes or until the onions are becoming translucent. Add capers, garlic, smoked paprika and parsley stems and sauté for another minute or two, stirring, until onions are cooked through.

Add beans, tomatoes, parsley tops and 1½ cups vegetable stock (or water). Bring to the boil, and simmer, stirring often, for 7-8 minutes. As it cooks, mash a few of the beans (not too many) to help bring the sauce together. Add the rest of the stock as it cooks if the mixture becomes too thick.

Once the beans are cooked to your liking, remove them from the heat and finish with the juice and zest from the lemon, and season with sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste. Serve with the pangrattato on the side and a loaf of crusty homemade bread to mop up the juices from the beans.

Recipe notes ** You can either use tinned butter beans in this recipe or beans which you have soaked and cooked yourself (you may have even grown them too!). If you go down this road, be sure to save some bean stock and use it instead of vegetable stock in the sauce - it adds a lovely depth to the beans.