This is an excellent standby soup as it comes totally from the cupboard from the cupboard and fridge. It is excellent pre-Christmas, when you want to eat something simple in order to savour the Christmas meal to come, it is excellent post-Christmas when you have indigestion, it is excellent on a winter’s day when only tomato soup will do. We also eat it when we’ve arrived in Spain to find the supermarket shut as it’s a local fiesta, we’ve learned the hard way to always have onions to hand and a well-stocked store cupboard. This is an old recipe, one my mother made regularly. When I left home for university she gave me the book and it sustained me throughout my student years, followed by years of earning not very much. The original book fell apart so now I have a shinier newer one, but the recipes remain just as good. The original recipe uses dried beans, but I use a Spanish jar and so have adapted the recipe accordingly. Serves 3-4
1 jar or tin butter beans, drained and rinsed
1 pint water or vegetable stock
1 bayleaf
2 large onions, chopped
2 tbsp oil
1 tin chopped tomatoes
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper Heat the oil over a medium heat in a large saucepan, add the chopped onions and fry gently until browning around the edges. Add the bay leaf and stir so the leaf is coated with oil. Add the cooked beans, tomatoes and stock to the pan. Stir. Add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 20 minutes until the butter beans are softened. I find that the Spanish butter beans are slightly larger and harder than the English tinned variety, so check after 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Remove the bay leaf. The recipe says to add a little sugar if you think it necessary at this point, but I never have. Whizz until smooth with a handheld blender. Serve with crusty bread and a chunk of cheese. If you have fresh parsley to hand, chop some and sprinkle over the top. 5 to remember
de reserva – standby
sencillo/a – simple
la indigestión – indigestion
regularmente – regularly
el/la estudiante – student

‘The Bean Book’ by Rose Elliot