Fassoulia aka garlic baked beans!

Fassoulia is one of my favourite things to eat, when asked at a foodie event a few months ago I realised it would be an integral part of a last meal if I ever have to choose one. For me it conjures up memories of my childhood and is the ultimate (healthy!!) comfort food.

My dad would say it really should have slow cooked lamb as part of it but I very rarely include it and it makes a great veggie dish. The traditional recipe doesn't include onion or passata but I think both make a great addition - I'm always looking for ways to add more vegetables - feel free to leave them out if you're a purist. You'll also notice the recipe has lots of options of what to use, this is because for me this is a store cupboard staple and we eat a lot of beans when we're running out of food!

Part of the reason I've finally got around to sharing the recipe is that I'm currently doing a three day experiment of eating only rice, beans and veggies. I will write more about this in a later post but I wanted to share one of my favourite things with you.

Apologies for the atrocious picture - my hob lights are broken and its making everything very shadowed at the moment!

Fassoulia

Whole bulb of garlic, cloves peeled and finely chopped or crushed
Large white onion, finely chopped (optional)
Dried oregano, a good couple of tablespoons
500g bag of dried haricot beans, soaked overnight
Tomato puree, at least half a tube
Passata (optional)
Olive or coconut oil (flavourless variety)
Water or vegetable stock
Salt and pepper
Fresh squeezed lemon juice (or bottled for emergencies only - it really does't taste the same but sometimes needs must)

Heat your chosen oil in a large non-stick pan, fry your garlic (and onion) until soft.
Add your oregano and beans, cook through for a minute or two coating the beans in oil, add a good pinch of salt.
Cover with boiling water or vegetable stock and allow to bubble away for about 30-40 minutes - you need to take the bite out of the beans before you add any tomato or it takes what feels like forever to cook!
Once your beans are part cooked add the tomato puree and passata if using, stir through and allow to bubble away for another hour or so until the beans are fully cooked through.
Once your beans are cooked season to taste - you need lots of fresh ground black pepper - then add the juice of a couple of lemons.
Scoff with rice, baked potatoes, toast, any carb you like!