Doc V's Healthy Kitchen

My mother hated beans, so we never got them on our plate. As I grew older, and I started to explore the world gastronomy, I started more and more to appreciate the whole family of legumes, not only because of their nutritional benefits, but also because of the flavor, the variety, the price etcetera.

This recipe got my attention while reading the book ‘Lugma’ of Noor Murad who is one of the side kicks of Ottolenghi.

Instead of eating this dish as breakfast we enjoyed it as a dinner : Arabic baked beans. As usual I changed a few things, to ease my life.

What did I use : 1 container of cannellini beans, 1can of plum tomatoes, 1 onion, 4 garlic cloves, 1 chili, a large piece of fresh ginger ( 5 cm), 2 teaspoons of cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon of ground coriander, 1 teaspoon of paprika powder, 1 table spoon of concentrated tomato puree, a pinch of sugar, 125 ml of light cream ( instead of labneh), 60 grams of grated cheese ( cheddar would have been much better, but wasn’t available), some spring onions and fresh parsley.

Heat 1,5 table spoon of olive oil. Add the chopped onion, garlic, chili, ginger. Stir and fry. Add the spices. Stir and fry.  Add the tomato puree. Stir and fry.

Add the canned tomatoes with 1/2 of the can filled  with water. Stir. Add the beans and their liquid, some salt, pepper and allow to simmer.

Stir now and again. Add the light cream. Set aside. Taste, add pepper and salt.

Before dinner, reheat the dish. Spread the chopped spring onions. Spread the grated cheese.

Put the pan in the preheated oven at 200°. Put in the oven until the cheese has melted and starts to get golden.

Finish with fresh parsley. Serve on a whole wheat flatbread. Enjoy a cheap, nutritious meal.

Thanks for sharing this lovely recipe in your amazing book, Noor.