Flageolet Gratin

Flageolets do soak up whatever you cook them with so make sure you use quality ingredients in the basic preparation. The sautéed onion and fennel added here imparts an intriguing combo of texture and flavour. This dish and a salad makes a splendid meal!

• 400g cooked Flageolet beans, strained, liquid reserved

• 5 tablespoons olive oil

• 2 medium fennel bulbs (or 1 large), outer layers removed, cored and thinly sliced

• 1 onion, chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 40g breadcrumbs

• 1 teaspoon dried thyme

In a frying pan over medium-low heat, warm 3 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the fennel, onion and garlic and sauté until soft and well-cooked, 15 to 20 minutes. Gently stir in the beans and remove from the heat. Preheat the oven to 190C. In a small bowl, thoroughly mix the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, the breadcrumbs and the thyme. In a 9-inch/20cm gratin dish, first add the onion-bean mixture. Add enough of the reserved bean-cooking liquid so that the liquid goes just under halfway below the top of the beans. Top off with the breadcrumb mixture. Bake for 20 minutes or until the breadcrumbs are browned and the liquid is bubbling.