Bean Salad with Lemon & Mint

Hasn’t the weather been glorious this weekend! It was so nice to be able to wander outside without the need for a coat. I loved wandering around the garden, the trees full of blossom, the last few daffodils nodding in the breeze, the grass lush and green, the sun making everything seem bright and vibrant. Such sun evokes visions of BBQ’s and summer picnics and my favourite bit…fresh tasty salads!

After our long spell of cold miserable weather the kitchen was rather short on summer salad ingredients but thanks to the wonderful processes of bottling and canning I was still able to put together a fresh and tasty bean salad for us to enjoy with dinner.

Lemon zest and juice take the place of vinegar for a quick and simple zingy dressing which was jazzed up with a bit of fresh mint and chives from the garden. The smells wafting up as they were picked were wonderful. A little sweetcorn and a few sundried tomatoes added sweetness and sunny colour without the need to visit the shops. Quick, fresh and tasty. Hurrah for sunshine :)

Bean Salad with Lemon & Mint

Ingredients
1 x 400g tin mixed beans (flageolet, kidney beans and cannellini etc)
½ tin sweetcorn (75g)
200g marrowfat or broad beans
6 sundried tomatoes in oil
Zest of ½ lemon
Juice of ½ lemon
Small bunch fresh chives
10 fresh mint leaves
Salt & pepper
1 tbsp olive oil

Method
Drain and rinse the mixed beans, sweetcorn and marrowfat/broad beans. Shell the broad beans by gently squeezing them along the seam and popping them into a bowl. Discard the thin outer shell.
Finely chop the sundried tomatoes, mint leaves and chives using scissors.
Add all the veg, beans and herbs into a bowl and mix to combine.
Add the finely grated zest and juice of half a lemon and drizzle in the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Serve as an accompaniment to other salads and assorted nibbly bits or own its own.