Swedish-style ‘meatballs’ and creamy pasta: School Night Vegan’s midweek recipes for tinned beans | Food

When I say I’m a fan of canned beans, I imply I’m a stan of canned beans. A good friend as soon as joked that I might write a cookbook referred to as Doing New Issues With a Tin of Beans, which I very almost mistook for a problem. Nutritionally, they’re a powerhouse, but it surely’s their versatility that actually offers me life. I just lately discovered which you could mix a whole tin of cannellini beans to make a silky-smooth double cream substitute, preferrred for shiny pasta sauces resembling this vegan penne alla vodka. Borlotti, alternatively, are beautiful and meaty when mashed with diced mushrooms and used like mince.

Borlotti bean Swedish “meatballs” (pictured above)

Don’t be tempted to mash the beans to oblivion – you need to have a chunky texture – so I’d advise towards utilizing a meals processor, for those who will help it. A fork or potato masher ought to do the job.

Prep 15 min
Cook dinner 45 min
Serves 4

For the ‘meatballs’
1 x 400g tin borlotti beans, drained and rinsed
60g panko breadcrumbs
50ml boiling water
2 tbsp vegan bouillon, or inventory powder
2 tsp vegan gravy granules (I exploit crimson Bisto, however strict vegans might favor another)
1 tsp Marmite
25g vegan butter or margarine
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
85g shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped
½ tsp advantageous sea salt
½ tsp floor black pepper
⅛ tsp floor nutmeg
¼ tsp allspice
1 tbsp vegetable oil
Finely chopped parsley, to serve
Lingonberry or cranberry sauce, to serve

For the gravy
40g vegan butter
3 tbsp plain white flour
380ml vegetable inventory
150ml unsweetened and unflavoured soy milk

In a medium bowl, mash the beans with a fork till each is simply damaged up and the combination is chunky; don’t mash it to a paste. Add the breadcrumbs and combine to mix.

Put the boiling water, inventory powder, Bisto and Marmite in a measuring jug and whisk {smooth}.

Set a medium frying pan over a medium-low warmth and add the butter. As soon as melted, add the onion and fry gently, stirring, for two minutes. Because the chopped onion turns translucent, add the mushrooms, fry, stirring, for eight to 10 minutes extra, then add the salt, pepper and spices, stir to mix and take off the warmth.

Add the onions to the mashed bean combine, together with the Bisto and Marmite, and stir to mix. With flippantly moist arms, type the combination into tablespoon-sized balls and placed on a plate.

Put the frying pan again on a medium warmth and add the vegetable oil. Fry the balls in two batches for about 10 minutes every, turning them usually, till flippantly browned throughout, then switch to a plate when you make the gravy.

Return the frying pan to a medium-low warmth and add the butter. As soon as melted, whisk within the flour till you’ve got a {smooth} paste. Add the inventory little by little, whisking as you go, till {smooth}. Deliver to a delicate simmer, whisking continually, till the combination thickens right into a wealthy gravy. Nonetheless whisking, add the soy milk in a gradual, regular stream and, as soon as the gravy is {smooth} and creamy, flip the warmth to low and return the meatballs to the pan. Depart to simmer gently for a couple of minutes, stirring usually to stop the gravy from sticking, then serve with mashed potato or pappardelle, a sprinkle of contemporary parsley and some lingonberry or cranberry sauce.

Penne alla vodka with cannellini cream

You’ll want a high-speed blender to get a very {smooth} cannellini cream. In case you don’t have one, get the beans as {smooth} as you possibly can with a stick blender or a meals processor, then go via a advantageous sieve to catch any robust skins.

Prep 10 min
Cook dinner 20 min
Serves 4

1 x 400g tin cannellini beans, undrained
100ml unsweetened and unflavoured soy milk
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, peeled and very finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
4 tbsp tomato puree
½ tsp sugar
350g passata
70ml vodka
½ tsp chilli flakes, plus additional to serve
Salt and black pepper
300g dried penne
1 small handful basil leaves, to complete

Put the beans and their liquid in a high-speed blender with the soya milk, mix till very {smooth} and creamy, then put aside.

Put a medium saucepan on medium-low warmth and add the olive oil. As soon as sizzling, add the onion and fry, stirring usually, for three to 5 minutes, till softened. Add the garlic and fry for two minutes extra, taking care to not let it brown.

Add the tomato puree, sugar, passata, vodka and chilli flakes, stir to mix, then convey as much as a simmer. Cowl the pan and go away the sauce to simmer for eight to 10 minutes, stirring sometimes to verify it doesn’t catch.

In the meantime, convey a big saucepan of salted water to a boil, add the penne and prepare dinner based on the packet directions, till al dente.

As soon as the sauce has decreased and thickened, stir within the cannellini cream, season to style and preserve heat.

As soon as al dente, drain the pasta, reserving 150ml of its cooking water. Add the pasta to the sauce, flip the warmth down low and toss to mix. Cook dinner, tossing and stirring usually, for two minutes, including the reserved pasta water as required to loosen the sauce (it’s possible you’ll not want all of the water; use simply sufficient to convey the sauce to your required consistency).

Serve with an additional sprinkle of chilli flakes or freshly floor black pepper, and a scattering of torn contemporary basil.