Rustic Pesto with Beans and Zucchini Salad

This delicious dish was one of the stand out favourites from our Sunday Table lunches last summer. It is quick to make and there is absolutely nothing tricky about the technique, but as with so many simple dishes it is all about the quality and freshness of the ingredients, in particular, the garlic.

One of my secret ambitions is to start a home grown garlic craze – not only is it one of the easiest and most space efficient things to be self sufficient in (a neighbour of mine harvested more than 100 heads from a single tractor tyre bed this year) but I believe that no other ingredient makes as big a contribution to the deliciousness of food. Once you’ve tasted it, you’ll never go back. If you can’t grow your own, go and see Matt and Lentil of Grown & Gathered and see if they will sell you some!

As a crunchy accompaniment to this salad I like to serve it with lavosh crackers (depending on my mood I will make my own, though good quality store bought work just as well) with a marinated goats cheese spread with some edible flowers from the garden.

Method

Cut the zucchini into thin matchsticks. Combine with the uncooked beans (no need to cook, or top and tail, if they are super fresh and tender), toss with a little lemon juice and set aside.

Place the basil in a large mortar and pestle along with the almonds, the garlic, sea salt and about half a cup of the olive oil and pound until the almonds are broken up but still in pieces and the basil is crushed rather than pulped. It is important not to reduce the pesto to a traditional paste otherwise you will lose the sweetness that sits at the forefront of this dish. Check for seasoning and set aside.

Mix half the pesto through the zucchini/bean mix and toss. Then add remainder of pest. You may need to add a little more olive oil. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon over the top, scatter small chunks of marinated goat’s milk fetta and a pinch of sea salt and gently toss through.

I like pair this super green salad with a bit of crunch, mainly with some lavosh and a little chevre cheese spread I whip up.

This is less a recipe than it is a flourish and the kind of thing you can easily adapt to suit your own tastes and garden ingredients. Place the chevre into a medium bowl and add a generous squeeze of the lime juice, a pinch of sea salt, the chopped dill, and a drizzle of olive oil. Combine well with a fork and taste to check the the flavours are in balance – the trick is not to go too heavy on the lime (this spread is best made a few hours before you want to use it so that all the delicious flavours have time to mingle – taste again just before you intend to serve). When ready to use, spread a little on a lavosh biscuit and top with an edible flower.

This is the kind of thing I could eat all day long, and regularly do!