Bean and gone and done it! Broad bean dip.

 It’s wonderful when you discover something new, something that you had never considered before that turns out to be so tasty as well as simple to make. Well that’s exactly what happened when we got broad beans in our Veg delivery.

 In my younger years I was never keen on broad beans so to say I was not excited would be a bit of an understatement. First off it was a quick scan through the cook books, nothing there grabbed me so then it was onto that World Wide Web thing to discover a recipe that took my fancy. Dippable broad beans. Yes you did read that right, a broad bean dip courtesy of our old pals at Abel & Cole. Their recipes had always been good to date so I was up for giving it a go and was not disappointed in the least, Easy to make and so tasty served with toasted pitta bread I would recommend you give this a try.  

Broad bean dip

 Prep time 15 mins                              Cook time 10 mins                                            Serves 2-3 

Ingredients

1 mug of shelled broad beans

1 small red chilli deseeded and finely chopped (use more or less to suit your taste)

A handful of fresh basil or mint leaves

1 lemon

A glug of olive oil

Sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

Method

1. Simmer the broad beans in a little watter until tender, approx 5 mins. refresh in cold water
2. Peel away the shell of the beans with your fingers leaving the soft centre.
3. Add the beans, chilli and mint to a food processor with a splash of olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper, and a good squeeze of lemon.
4. Whiz till smooth. Taste. Adjust seasoning and add more lemon or olive oil, if needed.

 Pop in a tub, gloss the top with olive oil and it’ll keep in the fridge for 3-4 days. It’ll also freeze. Just defrost and get dippin’

Serve with toased pittas or fresh crusty bread