Fagioli all’uccelletto

Prep time: 10 minutes, plus 12 hours’ soaking time Cook time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Serves 8

INGREDIENTS

For the plain beans

– 500g cannellini beans – 1 large onion, halved – 2 sticks of celery,

halved

– 1 carrot, halved – 1 head garlic, unpeeled and cut across the middle – 2 sage leaves

For the fagioli all’uccelletto

– 100ml extra-virgin olive oil (plus more if you want it)

– 6 garlic cloves, very

finely chopped

– 2 sage leaves

– 400ml passata

– 2 tbsp tomato purée

METHOD

Soak the beans for 12 hours covered in plenty of water. Drain, rinse and put into a large saucepan. Cover with fresh water and add the vegetables and herbs.

Heat the oven to 150C/140C fan/gas mark 2.

Pour about 4 tbsp of the olive oil on to the beans, bring to the boil on the hob, then transfer to the oven and bake, uncovered, for an hour. You need to check to see whether the beans are getting too dry – add some water if you need it – and stir them from time to time. The beans should become slightly creamy.

Remove the onion, carrot, celery and garlic head if you can find them (if you can’t, don’t worry). If the beans are tender, they’re ready for the next stage.

Heat the rest of the olive oil and sauté the chopped garlic cloves and sage until they have flavoured the oil, but don’t fry them.

Drain the beans, holding on to the cooking liquid. Add the beans to the garlicky oil along with the passata and the tomato purée. Season.

Pour on enough of the cooking water to keep the beans moist and season well.

Put into the oven for 30 minutes, lid off, or cook gently on the hob for the same amount of time. Taste to check the seasoning. The end result should be moist but not soupy.

These taste even better the day after you’ve cooked them.