Fagioli all’uccelletto
Cannellini beans with tomato and herbs

Prep time: 15 mins | Total time: 1 hour 30 mins | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 250g (8 oz) dried cannellini beans, soaked the night before in plenty of water
• A few small pieces kombu seaweed (opional)
• 650 g (1.5 lb) ripe tomatoes, skinned and chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, squashed
• 10 sage leaves
• Olive oil

Directions

• Change the water that the beans have soaked in overnight. Do not add salt to the water. Add the seaweed to improve digestibility.
• Bring to the boil then turn down and simmer slowly for an hour and a half or until the beans are tender but not mushy. You can us a pressure cooker to save time.
• Heat a good swirl of olive oil in a pot and add the garlic and sage leaves. Allow to fry a little but don’t let the garlic brown.
• When the garlic just begins to brown, add the tomatoes and cook on a low heat for 10 minutes.
• Add the drained beans and cook on a low heat for a further 20 minutes or until the sauce has reduced considerably and coats the beans thickly.
• Serve dressed with more raw olive oil swirled on top.