I have written before about my love for dukkah, the Egyptian spice mix of nuts, herbs and spices. I always have a jar on hand in the kitchen and find it a remarkably versatile ingredient, adding a burst of flavour and texture to so many things. I sprinkle it on roasted vegetables, enjoy it with bread and olive oil and have even added it to chocolate.

My go to recipe for dukkah is based on pistachios but recently I picked up a big bag of Georgia pecans from a farm shop and simply had to try a batch of pecan dukkah. I was delighted with the result.

As luck would have it, this coincided with having a batch of broad beans, or fava beans as they are known on this side of the Atlantic, on hand. One of my favourite vegetables, fresh ones are pretty hard to find in my neck of the woods so I invariably grab some whenever I find some. Extracting the beans from their velvet lined pods is a particularly enjoyable thing to do.

I lightly boiled the beans until tender whilst toasting some slices of whole wheat bread. I then spread a generous layer of fresh goats cheese on the bread and then liberally sprinkled it with some of the dukkah before adding some of the cooked beans and adding more dukkah on top.

It made for a simple yet deeply satisfying lunch dish.

Pecan Dukkah

4oz shelled pecans

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp sesame seeds

1 tsp chili flakes

1 tsp sea salt

Lightly toast the pecans over medium heat in a small pan until they are aromatic, about 4-5 minutes. Keep a close eye on them as they can burn easily. Remove from the heat, allow them to cool a little, then roughly chop them.

In the same pan, gently toast the cumin and coriander seeds over medium heat until they are aromatic, about 4-5 minutes. Place in a pestle and mortar and lightly crush.

Gently toast the sesame seeds in the same way and then add to the pestle and mortar along with the chopped pecans. Bash them until the nuts are broken into small pieces, then add the chili flakes and salt and stir well to combine. Transfer to a jar where the mix will keep for a few weeks.