Cheddar, leek and butter bean bake with chicory salad
- Prepare
- less than 30 mins
- Cook
- 30 mins to 1 hour
- Serve
- Serves 4
A simple white sauce is given some oomph with miso, mustard and yeast extract as well as generous amount of cheese. Feel free to switch the butter beans for other white beans. The sharpness of chicory sits well alongside the rich bake but a basic green salad is also lovely if you want to keep things simple.
Each serving provides 653 kcal, 29.7g protein, 37.1g carbohydrate (of which 10.6g sugars), 39.1g fat (of which 18.4g saturates), 17g fibre and 2g salt.
Ingredients
For the base
For the sauce
- 25g/1oz butter or plant based butter
- 25g/1oz plain flour
- 400ml/14fl oz full-fat or plant-based milk
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2–3 tbsp yeast extract, to taste
- 1 tbsp miso
- 200g/7oz cheddar or plant-based cheese, grated
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the chicory salad
- 1 lemon, zest only
- 1–2 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp Dijon mustard
- 3 tbsp good-quality extra virgin olive oil
- 3 heads chicory, leaves separated and any large leaves sliced in half lengthways
- 1 small shallot, peeled and very finely sliced
- pinch sugar
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
To make the base, cut each of the leeks into two pieces by cutting about two-thirds of the way down the leek to separate the green tops from the whites. Cut the white parts into 3–4mm thick slices. Halve the green parts lengthways and place under cold running water to clean any grit from the layers. Then finely slice.
Heat the oil in a shallow casserole or ovenproof frying pan and fry the finely sliced green leeks with salt until softened.
Stir in the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Fold through the butter beans until everything is well combined. Top with the rounds of white leek and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
To make the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan then mix in the flour. Gradually stir in the milk, beating out any lumps and bring to a gentle simmer. (Remove from the heat and beat with a whisk if it's lumpy.)
Cook for 2–3 minutes, or until thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the mustard, yeast extract and miso. Season with salt and pepper.
Pour the sauce over the base in the casserole, sprinkle with cheese and crack over a generous amount of black pepper. Bake for 30 minutes until golden and bubbling.
To make the salad, whisk the lemon zest, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, mustard and oil in a small bowl. Season with salt and lots of pepper.
Toss the chicory and shallot gently with the dressing to coat in a large bowl. Taste and add more lemon juice if needed – it should be sharp but not too harsh.
Divide the bake between plates and serve with the salad and crusty bread.
Recipe tips
To get extra colour on the top of the bake, grill lightly with a chef’s blowtorch - but be careful to keep your hands and hair away from the flames, if using.
You can make this dish entirely plant-based if you wish.
