Beans & Squash on Toast

Beans & Squash on Toast

Tomatoes make a delicious rich sauce for dried beans, but can be a little thin on the ground in late Autumn, but squash is a delicious substitute. Roasted in the oven to focus it’s flavour before thickening a spicy rich sauce to coat those hearty beans. 

Black beans have a deliciously earthy flavour, perfect for carrying deep flavour and the squash. Baked in the sauce and served on a thick wedge of bread, baked with a little oil and smear of garlic. 

Serves 2
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:
1 squash - eg Uchiki Kuri, Meteor, Celebration, Winter Sweet, Black Futsu
150g dried black beans or a tin of ready to use
2 bay leaves
Oil
2 small onions
1 dried chilli (or a few sundried tomatoes)
Coffee
4 cloves of garlic
Sea salt flakes
Tomato puree
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp cinnamon
1tsp paptika
1 sprig of rosemary or 1 tsp dried
Lots of fresh ground black pepper

Your favourite bread

Preheat the oven to 180°C

1.                Using tinned beans works just as well, or soak your beans overnight before cooking in simmering salted water, with a bay leaf, for around 45 minutes or until tender.

2.               While the beans are cooking the rest of the sauce can be made. Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds (and roast for a snack), drizzle a little oil over the cut squash and season. Cover with foil in a roasting tray and bake in the oven for around 30 minutes or until tender.

3.               For the base of the sauce, finely chop the onions and cook over a very low heat in a casserole dish with a generous pinch of salt. Cook them very slowly with a lid on to capture the moisture until they are a light toffee colour and almost dissolving. This will take around 25 minutes.

4.               Rehydrate the chilli or sundried tomatoes in a cup of black coffee. Check the beans and squash. Once the beans are cooked, drain and leave to steam, and leave the squash to cool enough to handle. 

5.               Crush three of the garlic cloves and add to the onions once they are ready, then add a generous squirt of tomato puree. Continue to cook for a few minutes with the lid on.

6.               Remove the chilli or tomatoes from the coffee and chop before adding to the casserole dish with the coffee. 

7.               Scoop out the flesh from half the squash (use the other half of the cooked squash for another recipe) into the casserole, mash a little, add the beans then top up with enough water to make a thick sauce. Bake with the lid on in the oven for 25 minutes. 

8.               While the beans are in the oven, cut a few thick wedges of sourdough bread, lightly butter, season with salt and pepper, then bake until crisp. Wipe with the remaining garlic clove and pile the beans on top. 

Serve with roast sprouting broccoli, a fried egg or cheese... or all three!
Chef Notes:
1.                Cooking the onions until they are very soft and toffee in colour enriches the sauce and brings a deeper sweetness. Take the time to get them to this stage.