White beans are pureed with roasted garlic and a generous shaving of Grana Padano. Served with crudites of summer vegetables.
Ingredients
1 garlic head
2 400g tins cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 cup finely grated Grana Padano PDO
Salt and pepper
240 ml Extra virgin olive oil
1 sprig rosemary
To serve
Raw vegetables, grissini, focaccia
Preparation
STEP 1
Roast the garlic: heat the oven to 200c. Peel off most of the garlic’s outermost skin but leave the whole head intact. Trim about 1/4 inch off the top of the garlic to expose the cloves. Place the garlic on a large piece of aluminum foil, then drizzle 1 teaspoon olive oil over the exposed cloves and close the foil into a pouch. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until you can pierce the center of the head with a knife. Let cool slightly. While it roasts, prepare your Grana Padano PDO cheese by finely grating it on a microplane grater for soft cloud like cheese.
STEP 2
Pour extra virgin olive oil into a pan with a sprig of rosemary and heat till rosemary is fragrant. 1-2 mins and then remove from heat and allow to infuse and cool.
STEP 3
Once garlic is roasted and cooled slightly, remove the skins and place the garlic cloves into a food processor and add in white cannellini beans, grated Grana Padano, lemon zest and juice, pinch of salt and freshly cracked pepper. Turn the blender on and blend until smooth adding in olive oil slowly to help emulsify. Save a few tablespoon of rosemary infused olive oil for garnish. If you need to add a little water to help make the dip more smooth you can do so 1 tablespoon at time.
STEP 4
Scoop dip out into a bowl, garnish with a little lemon zest, rosemary olive oil, and an extra grating of Grana Padano. Serve with vegetable crudités, focaccia and grissini.