This Tuscan-style bean stew is a hearty and warming vegan dish, packed with vegetables, beans, tomatoes and fresh rosemary. Pearl barley adds a lovely texture and makes the stew wonderfully filling, while balsamic vinegar and nutritional yeast add depth and savoury flavour.

It’s a simple one-pot meal that’s perfect for a cosy lunch or supper, especially when you’re craving something comforting and satisfying. The combination of creamy butter beans, cannellini beans, cavolo nero and rich tomatoes makes this a deliciously wholesome stew with plenty of Tuscan-inspired flavour.

• olive oil for sautéing
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 celery sticks, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 rosemary sprigs, 2 stripped and chopped, 1 left whole
• 1 tbsp. tomato puree
• 4 tbsp pearl barley
• Tin plum tomatoes, crushed with your hands
• 1.5 pints vegan stock
• 1 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tin butter beans
• 1 tin cannellini beans
• 3 cavolo nero leaves only, chopped
• sea salt
• freshly cracked black pepper

• Sauté diced onion, carrots, and celery until soft.
• Add the garlic and chopped rosemary, stir then add the tomato puree, mix well.
• Sprinkle in the pearl barley, give it a stir then add the tomato, stock, and rosemary twig.
• Add the balsamic vinegar and nutritional yeast and season well.
• Cook for 20 minutes.
• Add the tinned beans into the stew, and the cavolo nero. Mix well and cook for a few minutes more.
• Serve with crusty bread and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

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