Cannellini, tomato and rosemary gratin

Ingredients

2 cups cannellini beans, soaked overnight (or 2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed)
2 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped, plus extra to garnish
1 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 cup passata
1½ cups sourdough bread, cut into small cubes
75ml milk
50g butter, melted
2 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180°C or 160°C fan-forced.

Drain soaked beans, place them in a saucepan and cover with water. Salt generously and bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for half an hour or until the beans are tender. Drain, stir through the half of the olive oil and the rosemary and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a saucepan over medium and cook the onion until translucent, about five minutes. Add the garlic and stir for another minute, add the passata and chopped tomatoes and bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Add the beans to the saucepan and combine. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, soak the sourdough cubes in the milk and melted butter for about five minutes. Spoon the tomato beans into a gratin dish, top with the sourdough cubes and dot with the extra rosemary and parsley. Cook for 25 minutes or until the top is golden and the beans are bubbling underneath.

Notes:

This is the kind of food I crave on days like these. You could serve it with anything from slow-roasted lamb to warmed flat bread and a green salad or some poached eggs for brunch. Either way, I can’t think of a more perfect way to ring in the new season!
This recipe was created by Sophie Hansen for Kidspot, New Zealand’s best recipe finder.