Main Meals Archives

Burger recipes

Smoky paprika-and-tomato baked barley and beans

4 hours

Slow roast

Greek-style braised pork shoulder with fennel-and-baby marrow salad

4–5 hours

Sandwich recipes

Milk-poached carrot-and-turnip mash with vino cotto-roasted butternut

1 hour

Aliums

Parmesan-baked onions with beans and rustic ciabatta croutons

1 hour 15 minutes

Brinjal recipes

Chargrilled Asian-style brinjals with noodles

40 minutes

Apple recipes

Braised chicken with shallots, apple and cider

30 minutes

Chicken recipes

Pot au feu-inspired chicken stew

1 hour 20 mintues

Bistecca fiorentina with creamy beans

Difficulty Easy

Prep Time 40 minutes, plus overnight soaking time

Cooking Time 1 hour

Ingredients

For the beans:

250 g dried cannellini beans, soaked overnight
2 T butter
1 T olive oil
4 leeks, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T thyme
2 cups cream
½ cup beef stock
salt, to taste
2 T-bones (550 g), at room temperature
6 T butter
1 t ground green peppercorns
3 T balsamic vinegar

Method

1. To make the beans, drain and simmer in fresh water for 30 minutes, or until soft. Drain.

2. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Heat the butter and the olive oil in an ovenproof pan. Add the leeks and cook until soft and slightly coloured. Add the beans, garlic and thyme and cook for 1 minute. Add the cream and stock and season. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until bubbling.

3. To make the steak, rub the steaks with 2 T butter and the pepper. Heat a grill pan until smoking hot and cook the steaks for 5 minutes on one side until caramelised. Turn and cook for a few more minutes.

4. Remove from the heat and loosely cover with foil to rest. Heat the remaining butter and balsamic vinegar in a pan until the butter is melted. Whisk to combine.

5. To serve, cut the steak off the bone and arrange the meat around the bone on top of the beans. Drizzle over the butter

Cook's note: Tuscans are particularly fond of their soups (try Hannah Lewry’s ribollita on page 66 of the July issue, on sale now) and bean-based dishes – the locals are often called mangiafagioli or bean eaters. Try garlicky, creamy cannellinis with our classic Florentine steak. Finish your meal with a sweet delicacy from Siena, famous for its ancient recipes including the 16th-century cavallucci – delicious with a young Chianti

Browse more Italian recipes here.

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Ricotta flapjacks

Crispy Szechuan pepper tofu

Slow-cooked duck leg ragù with pappardelle

Leek-and-onion soup with ricotta frittata

Chicken katsu burger

Smoky paprika-and-tomato baked barley and beans

Greek-style braised pork shoulder with fennel-and-baby marrow salad

Three-cheese toastie

Milk-poached carrot-and-turnip mash with vino cotto-roasted butternut

Parmesan-baked onions with beans and rustic ciabatta croutons

Chargrilled Asian-style brinjals with noodles

Braised chicken with shallots, apple and cider

Pot au feu-inspired chicken stew

Bistecca fiorentina with creamy beans

Bistecca fiorentina with creamy beans

Ingredients

Method