With just the addition of olive oil, garlic and bay leaves for flavour, this dish really symbolizes the best of the old cucina povera and makes a delicious complete meal. Add the greens and stir-fry over a medium-to-high heat for 2–3 minutes, then season with salt and pepper. In Genaro Contaldo's new and exciting book, Cucina, you will learn how to use simple ingredients, eat seasonally, spend less and eat better. Biography: Gennaro Contaldo's warmth, Italian spirit and sense of fun have led him to be one of the UK's most-loved chefs.

He is renowned for being a mentor to Jamie Oliver and teaching him, with Carluccio, everything Jamie knows about Italian cooking. If you can get dandelion or puntarelle from your greengrocer, remember to remove the heart, which you can then use in a salad (see Insalata di Cuore di Cicoria recipe on page 129).Encouraging an ethos of zero waste, Gennaro’s Cucina ensures that every part of the ingredient, and your budget, is put to good culinary use.

The philosophy of his book is simple, delicious, hearty meals using accessible and affordable ingredients.Place them in a saucepan, cover with plenty of fresh cold water, add the bay leaves and three garlic cloves, then bring to the boil and cook, partially covered, over a medium heat for about 45 minutes, until the beans are cooked through and tender. In doing so, they learnt to value what they had and to lovingly cook dishes to ensure they tasted better, using all their imagination to make dishes go as far as they could.