Creamy Courgette Beanotto™

• 1 jar of Queen White Beans or Organic White Beans - with their bean stock
• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to serve
• 2 courgettes, 1 coarsely grated, 1 sliced into 0.5cm rounds
• 2 clove garlic, finely grated
• Zest and juice of ½ lemon
• 1 tbsp creme fraiche, or plant-based alternative
• 45 g parmesan cheese (or vegan alternative), plus extra to serve
• 15 g parsley, leaves finely chopped
• A good handful of fresh basil leaves
• A handful of pine nuts or sunflower seeds (optional)

Instructions

1. Squeeze out as much liquid as you can from the grated courgettes. Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan for 2-3 minutes until golden, set aside.
2. Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a pan over a medium heat. Add the sliced courgettes with a pinch of salt and cook for 7-8 minutes until starting to brown, stirring occasionally. Then, add the grated courgette and garlic and cook everything for a further 2-3 minutes until the courgettes soften. Grate in the zest of ½ the lemon.
3. Pour in the beans with their bean stock, swill the jar ¼ with water and pour that in too - this acts as a stock. Stir to combine. Season well with cracked black pepper. As the white beans are well seasoned, we recommend tasting before adding salt.
4. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the creme fraîche and parmesan. This all comes together fairly quickly as you don’t want the creme fraîche to split. Stir in the chopped parsley and tear in most of the basil leaves, saving some for garnish. Check for seasoning and add the juice of ½ a lemon.
5. Serve the beans into bowls, grate over some more lemon zest and some more parmesan. Scatter over the toasted pine nuts, the remaining basil and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.