Beans with Italian sausages (fagioli con salsicce Italiane)

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 8 Italian sausages
• 2 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped
• 2 tsp chopped rosemary
• 3 celery stalks, finely sliced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 500ml vegetable stock
• 1 tsp chopped thyme
• 200g cooked borlotti beans
• 200g cooked cannellini beans
• 12 cherry tomatoes, washed

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the sausages until they’re cooked through, then transfer onto a plate. Slice on the diagonal and set aside.
2. Add the garlic, chilli and rosemary to the pan and sauté for 1 minute.
3. Stir in the celery and carrots and simmer for a further 3 minutes. Add the stock and thyme, cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Return the sausages to the pan and add the beans. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for a further 12 minutes.
5. Stir in the cherry tomatoes and simmer for 2 minutes. Drizzle with olive oil and serve immediately.

Keeping it local: try Cumberland sausages, pork & leek or pork & apple Sausages. You can replace the beans with new season potatoes - just leave the skins on and quarter them.

Eat Like An Italian

Catherine Fulvio of Ballyknocken House & Cookery School, has a book available now 'Eat Like An Italian: Recipes for the Good Life', published by Gill & Macmillan at £19.99, which provides lots of information and tips on how to adapt to a more leisurely lifestyle and incorporate the Italian food rules. Find out more about Catherine Fulvio at www.ballyknocken.com.