Full of Beans

Friday night's drive wasn't the best way to start the penultimate weekend of the coldest March I could remember; the reason being that part of the drive home included sliding down a hill on black ice sideways. The following day saw wall-to-wall snow more like that you might expect in December but not in March the week before the clocks were due to change to British Summertime. As a result any of the usual activities I undertake to take my mind off the working week were strictly off limits, apart from cooking that is.

The need to be warmed up coupled with the fact that I needed to use up two tins of Haricot Beans was the inspiration for making a soup of chili flakes, Haricot Beans and Tomatoes. The album in tow on the CD player for the culinary project of the day was Eric Clapton's 1975 live record EC Was Here. A good friend of mine sometimes refers to Clapton as 'Eric Crapton' with it has to be said a little justification as for our generation he is sadly associated with bland adult contemporary rock and providing soundtracks for beer adverts. None of this however can take away the fact that on his day he is one of the best guitarists and interpreters of the blues that has ever been seen and EC Was Here provides plenty of evidence to support this. 

I diced three cloves of garlic, the largest white onion I could lay my hands on and one stick of celery which I proceeded to slice width-ways and de-string. I added these vegetables to my Le Cresceut dish, which had its base covered with olive oil and was warming slowly on the hob. I cooked the garlic, celery and onion on a medium heat on the hob for ten minutes and also added a teaspoon of chili flakes to give an extra kick to the dish. 

After ten minutes, the celery, garlic and onion had taken on a golden colour which meant it was time to add half a pint of vegetable stock, two tins of Haricot Beans and a tin of chopped tomatoes. I stirred these ingredients together and let them cook on a medium heat for around twenty-five minutes until the celery, onion and garlic were softened. After this the soup was ready. 

The presence of the chili flakes helped give a real warmth and fire to the soup while the presence of the tinned tomatoes and haricot beans gave the sort of sweetness to it that was reminiscent of baked beans. This is definitely a cold weather soup as the beans give plenty of protein while the chili as well as the garlic and onion help heat you through. The fact that there is no need to blend the soup helps give it a real substantial taste and thickness- perfect to ward off the negative effects of being exposed to excess snow.