Salad of goat’s cheese, French beans and peaches

Salad of French beans, peach and goat’s cheese. Photograph: Harry Weir
Salad of French beans, peach and goat’s cheese. Photograph: Harry Weir
Serves: 4
Course: Starter
Cooking Time: 0 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

  • 2 x 220g packets of French beans, trimmed
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • ½tsp caster sugar
  • 100ml olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 soft rindless goat’s cheese log (150g)
  • 2 ripe peaches
  • 1tbs almonds, toasted
  • A little fresh mint

1 Cook the beans in a large pot of salted water. Have some iced water at the ready. After two minutes on a rolling boil, lift one out and test, there should be just a slight crunch.

2 Drain the beans and plunge them into the iced water to cool, then drain again.

3 Whisk the lemon juice with the caster sugar and olive oil, then add salt and pepper to season.

4 Dress the beans and onions with the lemon vinaigrette and divide on to plates or a single platter.

5 Cut the goat’s cheese into rounds and place around the beans along with the peaches. Scatter the almonds and mint on top and serve.

Paul Flynn

Paul Flynn

Paul Flynn is a chef, restaurateur and contributor to The Irish Times. He and his wife, Máire, run the Tannery restaurant and cookery school in Dungarvan, Co Waterford