An original idea for the table
Fennel & White Beans with Lemon-Oregano Oil and Pepitas
A crisp, creamy white-bean salad with thin fennel, celery, parsley, and a gently warmed lemon-oregano dressing. Toasted pumpkin seeds add the final crunch.
Paired with Alois Lageder Pinot Grigio 2023
- Serves
- 4 light-lunch or 6 side servings
- Prep
- 20 minutes
- Cook
- 5 minutes
- Total
- About 25 minutes
Slice the vegetables while the infused oil cools. No chilling time is required.
Gather
Ingredients
- 2 cans (15 oz / 425 g each) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 medium fennel bulb (about 250 g after trimming), very thinly sliced
- 1 celery stalk, thinly sliced across the stalk
- ½ cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup (30 g) unsalted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus 1 teaspoon more if wanted
- ½ teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Useful equipment
Small skillet, large mixing bowl, and a sharp knife.
Make
At the stove
Toast the seeds.
Put the pumpkin seeds in the dry skillet over medium heat. Stir for 2–3 minutes, until lightly golden and beginning to pop. Transfer to a plate.
Perfume the oil gently.
Lower the heat to its lowest setting. Add the olive oil and oregano to the skillet and warm for 1 minute without frying the herb. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon zest, and let the oil cool while you slice the vegetables.
Keep the fennel fine.
Cut the fennel bulb in half through the base, remove the tough core, and slice thinly with a knife. Put it in the bowl with the celery and beans. Pat excess water from the rinsed beans first so the dressing does not become diluted.
Dress and fold.
Stir the 2 tablespoons lemon juice, salt, and pepper into the cooled oil. Pour over the beans and fennel. Fold gently with a broad spoon, then add the parsley. Taste before adding the optional extra teaspoon of lemon or more salt.
Finish at the table.
Divide between plates and scatter the pumpkin seeds on top just before serving. The salad should taste bright but not sharply lemony; add the seeds only at the end to preserve their crunch.
For a more substantial lunch, serve with bread. This recipe contains no cheese, cream, or alcoholic cooking ingredient.
Food meets wine
Why this pairing?
Fennel and parsley keep the dish aromatic, while white beans and olive oil give it more texture than a leaf salad. That creates a useful comparison with a Pinot Grigio whose producer describes time on lees. The small amount of lemon is intentional: the question is how freshness and texture meet, not how much acidity the plate can carry.
Read the Alois Lageder Pinot Grigio 2023 profile →