Sausages with Spinach and Cannellini Beans

Wash the spinach leaves and discard any thick stems. Put the leaves, still dripping wet, in a deep pan covered by a tight lid, over a moderate heat. Let them steam for 3 or 4 minutes, then turn the leaves over with kitchen tongs and steam for a further minute until they are collapsed and bright green. Remove from the heat and rinse the spinach briefly in ice-cold water, squeeze firmly to remove any water, then roughly chop and leave to cool.
Cook the sausages: put a large frying pan over a moderate heat. Warm the oil in a shallow pan to which you have a lid over a low to moderate heat. Place the sausages in the pan and brown. Keep a close eye on them, turning when the underside is a glossy, golden brown and continuing to cook until done to your liking.
Peel and squash flat the garlic cloves. You only want a mere hint of the clove. Warm the olive oil in a deep pan and add the garlic. Drain the cannellini beans and stir into the pan. Pour in the chicken stock, add the tarragon, a little salt, turn up the heat and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and let the beans simmer for about 5 minutes until the stock has reduced by half.
Introduce the cream and spinach into the beans and stir for a minute or two till bubbling. Stir in the parsley. Correct the seasoning with salt and pepper, and a little lemon juice to brighten the flavours. At this point I sometimes stir in a thin slice of butter to enrich the sauce. Serve with the sausages.

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