Caramelised Carrot, Haricot and Chard

Simple and straightforward, this meal makes the perfect lunch or light dinner for a summer’s evening after a long day in the garden. At once sweet, acidic and creamy, with a lightly infused Nasturtium vinegar dressing (the orangey-pink stuff in the photo above). Yesterday we did a big harvest of one of the chard patches, then filled it back up again with dwarf beans. But this means I have a fridge stuffed full of chard, so naturally this recipe is packed full too. And amongst all the sweetness and acidity, I’ve smuggled in some serious umami with thinly slices black garlic (leftover from the ingredients gifted to me from the Original Black Garlic company). In total this meal takes 40 minutes to prepare and cook, and 30 minutes of that is spent leaving it to roast in the oven.

A Top Secret Ingredient

There is an ingredient in this recipe which you can probably only get your hands on if you’ve grown it yourself. Green coriander seeds. If you’re growing coriander, you’ll know how easily it runs to seed and how much bees adore it’s delicate little flowers. In the polycrub, we’ve purposefully planted coriander, along with dill, at the front of the central bed to encourage local pollinators to come in and see to the cucumbers and tomatoes whilst they’re there.

As you walk into the polycrub the entire entrance is filled with humming as the little white petals of coriander are knocked to the ground by the bees. Not only are these plants fantastic for insects, but they’re great for us too. Shortly after being visited by a bee, the petals fall off and we’re left with tiny but plentiful coriander seeds (seen below).

Now, if you aren’t growing your own coriander you can still make this recipe by using store bought, dried coriander seeds, but you won’t experience the flavour and texture of fresh. In the future I’d love to use these in bread making or crushed as a lively and refreshing rub. But for this recipe I crushed them in a pestle and mortar and added them to the haricot bean and yoghurt mash for a lemony kick.

Nasturtium Infused Vinegar

If you’re anything like us, you have a couple of nasturtiums that are happily taking over the garden, having become triffids and started flowering like there’s no tomorrow. Luckily for us, every part of the plant is edible and very tasty. Whilst you may have seen the leaves used by fine dining restaurants, I wanted to use the flowers we have in abundance in a way that infuses their flavour (and colour) into a dish.

I plan to write up a full recipe for flower infusions at a later date, but for now I’ll write up a short version below. If you don’t fancy making this, feel free to use a red wine vinegar or cider vinegar, mixed with a teaspoon of maple syrup or honey.

Firstly, sterilize a jar and buy a light vinegar. Either a white wine or a cider vinegar, depending on your preference. Or you could use Mirin, which would be beautiful but more expensive. Collect as many flowers as you can fit in the jar and inspect them for pests. Pop them all in the jar and top up with as much vinegar as you can fit in. The flowers will float but this isn’t an issue. Screw the lid on and give it a shake, then leave it somewhere cool and out of direct sunlight. Let it infuse for 1 -3 weeks, turning the jar around each day to disturb the flowers so that none are left floating above the surface. The infusion is ready to use after the first 24 hours, but will be at it’s best 2 - 3 weeks later. After 3 weeks, pass the vinegar through a sieve to remove whatever is left of the flowers. The remaining vinegar can now be bottled and stored on a cool, dark shelf and used as a raw dressing. You could use the vinegar to cook with still but it will lose a lot of its delicate floral qualities.

Carrot, Haricot and Chard Recipe
Serves 2

Haricot Bean Mash

• 400g of cooked haricot beans

• 2 Caps full of cider vinegar

• A pinch of smoked sea salt

• 1tbs Green coriander seeds

• 2tbs Natural yoghurt

• 1tsp Wholegrain mustard

Roasted Vegetables

• 10 Medium carrots, chopped into 1cm thick pieces

• 3 Sticks of garlic greens / 2 Cloves of garlic

• 1tsp Maple syrup / honey

• Salt and pepper

The Rest

• 3-4 Large handfuls of chard, washed and roughly chopped

• Half a head of lettuce, shredded

• 2 Cloves of black garlic

• A pinch of green za’atar

• 6tbs Nasturtium vinegar

• 3tbs Maple syrup / honey

• As many handfuls of fresh parsley or coriander as you like

Step 1.

Preheat the oven at 190C / 375F and prepare your carrots by cutting them into discs at 1cm thick. Line a roasting tray with baking parchment and toss them in some cooking oil with a pinch of salt and pepper. Roast them for 25 minutes.

Step 2.

Whilst the carrots roast, place all your haricot bean mash ingredients (except for the green coriander seeds) in a blender and blend until smooth. Crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar as the seeds can be rather hard despite being undried, then add them to the bean mash without blending any further. This gives the mash a little texture and fragrance.

Step 3.

Prepare the garlic (cloves are halved, green garlic chopped into 1cm pieces). Toss them onto the carrot tray with the maple syrup or honey, give the whole lot a mix, then return it to the oven for another 10 minutes.

Step 4.

For the last step, wash and chop the chard, then lightly sauté it with a small drizzle of oil or knob of butter and a pinch of salt. Cook on a medium heat until the chard wilts, then remove the pan from the heat. Tip the contents of the roasting tray into the chard pan and shred as much lettuce as you’d like. The lettuce adds a much needed crisp crunch back into the dish.

To plate up, spread a few big spoonfuls of haricot mash on the plate and mix the nasturtium vinegar and honey / maple syrup. Drizzle over the bean mash and top with a few large handfuls of the roasted carrots and greens. Lastly, sprinkle with a pinch of green za’atar.