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This £2 ‘Marry Me’ Butter Bean Recipe Takes 15 Minutes And Contains Almost A Third Of Your Daily Fibre

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And let’s face it; with the sun shining and the temperatures rising, most of us feel less and less in the mood to stand over a hot stove for long.

I’m currently on a low-effort, high-fibre meal kick (about 90% of Brits fail to reach the NHS’s 30 g-a-day fibre recommendation, which is a shame as it can help to lower your risk of colon cancer).

First, that resulted in my overnight cocoa chia oat breakfast. And recently, it gave life to my new quick-fix “marry me” butter bean recipe, too (my ingredients offered 9g of fibre a serving without bread and is perfect for a speedy dinner or lunch).

The base is simple

TikTok’s viral “marry me” chicken recipe is actually older than you might think ― it’s a variation of “Tuscan”-style recipes (Mary Berry used the method before it got its catchy name).

The idea is simple: cook a tomato sauce around a protein and then add some form of dairy at the end to round it out.

“Marry me” recipes often use sundried, rather than regular, tomatoes for an added flavour punch. The result is a moreish, deep flavour that tricks you into thinking you’ve spent hours cooking out tomatoes.

My butter bean recipe does that same, but it’s a lot faster and more wallet-friendly (it involves a 50p can of butter beans, roughly half a pound’s worth of fresh basil, about £1 of Parmesan, approximately 80p of sun-dried tomato, and 50p cream cheese, plus pennies of herbs and spices, onions, and garlic).

Let’s round that up to £2 a person (my recipe fed two).

Here’s how it’s made

Ingredients (for 2)

  • 400g tin butter beans
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • Small onion, finely diced
  • 1 tablespoon oil (any is fine, though from the sundried tomato jar is best)
  • About 4 sun-dried tomatoes, diced
  • Half a teaspoon of chilli flakes
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • Fresh basil, chopped
  • 75g cream cheese
  • 50g grated parmesan
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Crusty bread (optional)

Instructions

  • Heat the pan to medium, and place the oil in it once hot. Place the finely-chopped shallots in oil along with a half teaspoon of salt once shimmering and keep simmering until translucent (about seven minutes).
  • Add the chopped garlic and sun-dried tomatoes along with the chilli flakes and oregano and fry off for a minute or until fragrant, then pour in the butter beans with their water.
  • Continue cooking for another 5 minutes or until the sauce begins to become jammy and thick.
  • Add the cream cheese, Parmesan, pepper, and salt to taste at the end, stirring until well combined (do this off the heat).
  • Serve and cover with chopped basil leaves. Eat with crusty bread if preferred.
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‘Act Fast, Don’t Panic’: Experts Share What To Do If You Click On A Scam Link

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If you’ve noticed more scam calls and increasingly convincing phishing emails recently, you’re not alone. The UK National Cybersecurity Centre (NCC) itself has said that “scams are getting smarter, and some even fool the experts”.

AI tools and voice cloning (where fraudsters use clips of someone’s voice to mimic a loved one on the phone) might make your online life feel increasingly fraught.

But what if you’ve already selected it by accident? Here, cybersecurity experts share their advice on what to do next.

General advice if you’ve clicked on a suspicious link

Tomas Stamulis, the chief security officer at digital privacy company Surfshark, said that you shouldn’t assume the worst if you’ve clicked on a suspicious link – though you should “act quickly”. In fact, all the experts we spoke to said speed matters here.

“Close the page straight away and avoid entering any personal information, passwords or payment details. If anything has downloaded or been installed, disconnect the device from the internet and run a full malware scan,” he added.

Neil Bayliss, director of IT support experts Hubtel IT, agreed that you should act immediately, but stressed you shouldn’t panic. “Scammers often count on you panicking and losing your ability to think rationally,” he explained.

And Stephen Bailey, director of client delivery at global cyber security company NCC Group, told us: “One of the biggest mistakes people make is delaying because they’re worried about admitting they clicked a link or opened an attachment.”

Both in your workplace or on a personal device, “taking action quickly can limit the damage and make it much harder for an attacker to gain further access”.

If you used, or think you might have used, a work account or device when entering your card details, contact your company’s IT team too, both Bailey and Bayliss shared.

What if I opened a link and shared my password?

Stamulis said that if you did enter some login details, change them from a “clean” device – not the one on which you received the scam email, text or call.

Start with your email address, he added, as access to your email can give hackers a path to other services via password changes. Stamulis advised using unique passwords and two-factor authentication.

Keep an eye on your bank, email, and “other important accounts for unfamiliar logins, password changes, or transactions over the following days and weeks,” he continued.

“Be particularly vigilant about unexpected calls, texts or emails offering to help with the issue, as scammers can use the situation to pose as a trusted company or support service and try to gather more information from you.”

What if I opened a link and shared financial details?

You should call your bank at once if you shared any financial information like your card or account details, stated Bayliss. “Make sure you use its official website or app, or call the contact number on the back of your card,” he said.

All the experts we spoke to said scammers might use the aftermath of a data breach to get more financial information from you, too.

Maybe your initial click on the link didn’t lead to any information they could use to directly draw money from your account.

But people should be very cautious of any unsolicited requests for credentials, financial information, or urgent action. “Instead, verify information through official channels and trusted sources before taking any action,” stated Bailey.

How can I report scam links?

Stamulis said that if the scam came via email, report it to your email provider and the National Cyber Security Centre. Don’t click on the link again, and don’t reply to the scammers.

You can also “forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk and suspicious text messages to 7726 free of charge,” Bayliss said.

You can also report scam calls to 7726, per Ofcom. Just select the phone number that called you (don’t dial it), copy it and paste into a SMS message to 7726.

How can I spot scam links going forward?

“There used to be quite common signs of a scam such as spelling mistakes or suspicious-looking links, but some criminals use AI tools to create convincing and polished messages,” suggested Bayliss.

Scams have gotten more “sophisticated” but one giveaway can be a sense of urgency.

If you receive a message or call that tells you you need to take immediate action, like resetting a password or following a link, consider it suspicious.

Bayliss warned: “Don’t let yourself become pressured or lose sight of clear red flags.”

And Stamulis said you should “treat unexpected contact with caution, avoid clicking links in messages and go to the relevant website or app independently”.

“It is also worth changing any reused passwords, enabling two-factor authentication and keeping an eye out for unusual account activity or unexpected password-reset requests,” he said.

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Trying To Get Tickets For Glastonbury 2027? An Expert Shares 5 Genius Browser Hacks

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After a fallow year in 2026, Glastonbury is returning next year, with tickets for the event finally set to go on sale on Sunday 4 October.

Famously, the Glasto ticket run is no mean feat. Tickets usually sell out within an hour, as thousands of music fans from around the world battle to secure their spots at Worthy Farm.

Any gig-goer will tell you that the gig-buying trenches are real, and far from getting you hyped for the event, trying to nab a ticket for a highly sought-after show is nothing short of a nightmare.

However, the experts at open-source web broswer Firefox have shared their five expert tips for preparing your browser for the ticket wars ahead of time, giving you the best possible chance of getting Glastonbury tickets.

Glastobury’s iconic Pyramid Stage in 2023
Glastobury’s iconic Pyramid Stage in 2023

via Associated Press

Top browser tips for securing Glastonbury tickets

Update your browser before ticket day – not five minutes before

Is there anything more frustrating than feeling like you are just about to sort tickets and then your browser needs an update?!

An out-of-date browser is the last thing you want to be dealing with when tickets go live. Check for any browser or system updates well in advance, and restart your device beforehand if needed. This reduces the chance of an unexpected update, restart or compatibility issue interrupting you at the worst possible moment.

Get your autofill in order

When you’re under pressure, even typing out an address can feel like it takes forever. Check the information saved in your browser’s autofill ahead of time and make sure names, addresses and other relevant details are accurate. It can save you from frantic typing – or spotting an old address just as you’re trying to complete your purchase.

Don’t assume more tabs mean more chances

It’s tempting to open tab after tab in the hope that one will magically get through first, but more isn’t necessarily better. Multiple tabs can quickly become confusing, particularly if the ticketing system uses a queue or session-based process.

Additionally, some websites detect this behaviour and ban you all together which is, needless to say, a nightmare.

Follow the ticket seller’s official guidance and avoid turning your browser into a sea of identical tabs you can’t keep track of.

Give your browser some breathing room

Before the sale starts, close as many unused tabs as possible. Keeping lots of tabs open can use up system memory, particularly if you’re also running other applications in the background – the last thing you want when you’re trying to secure a ticket.

Sort your logins before the countdown begins

Don’t wait until tickets are live to discover you’ve forgotten an important password. Check ahead of time that you can access any accounts you’ll need and have the necessary details to hand.

When is Glastonbury 2027, and when do tickets actually go on sale?

Worthy Farm will be reopening its doors on Wednesday 23 June 2027, with the main events lasting until Sunday 27.

General admission tickets will go on sale at 9am on Sunday 4 October.

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Dorothy Whipple: The ‘Forgotten’ 20th Century Author Austen Fans Will Love

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Though I think Victorian novelist Elizabeth Gaskell deserves more love, I have to concede she’s not exactly obscure: her work was on my university curriculum, and her novel North & South was even adapted by the BBC.

But after picking up my first Dorothy Whipple book recently, I had my first true “how have I never heard of her?” double-take. That’s not just because of how much I enjoyed her writing, but also because she used to be a bestseller – and is now all but forgotten.

Who is Dorothy Whipple?

Born in 1893 in Blackburn, Lancashire, she was the daughter of an architect.

She finished the first of her eight successful novels in 1927, when she was 34. But Dr Cynthia Johnston, a Senior Lecturer in the History of the Book at the School of Advanced Study, University of London who is working on a biography of the interwar writer, said she’d caught the writing bug early.

Aged just 12, she started publishing work in The Blackburn Telegraph under its “children’s corner”.

Two of her “immensely popular” novels (They Knew Mr Knight and They Were Sisters) got turned into feature films, and many were Book Society Choices or Recommendations.

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This success came even though she lacked some of the social connections her contemporaries made in universities like Oxford.

Partner in Austen publishing firm, John Murray, Ronald Barnes, the Third Lord Gorrell, helped to secure her success: he published her second book High Wages, after rejections, and suggested she was quite like Austen.

This book was one of her many hits. Dorothy’s last novel, Someone At A Distance, however, was somewhat critically ignored.

Dorothy Whipple

Amy Glover / HuffPost UK

Dorothy Whipple

What books has Dorothy Whipple written?

Her titles are:

  • Young Anne (1927)
  • Greenbanks (1932)
  • High Wages (1932)
  • They Knew Mr. Knight (1934)
  • The Priory (1939)
  • They Were Sisters (1943)
  • Because Of The Lockwoods (1949)
  • Every Good Deed (1950)
  • Someone at a Distance (1953)
  • Tale of Very Little Tortoise (1962)
  • The Smallest Tortoise of All (1964)
  • Little Hedgehog (1965)
  • Mrs. Puss and That Kitten (1967).

Why should I read Dorothy Whipple?

Speaking to HuffPost UK, Dr Johnston said: “I find her subjects and writing to be compelling and realistic. She has the elusive quality of ‘umputdownableness’, although she always said she was much better at character than plot.

“She is certainly ‘proto-feminist’, and her contemporary readers certainly recognised that in her writing. Readers identified with her characters; there is a realism to the novels that may have led readers both male and female to feel that these books spoke to their lived experiences.”

My first Whipple book, A Stranger at a Distance, was filled with the domestic politics and wry humour I loved as a long-time Austen reader. It was also more explicit about the work of running a house: it is clear who does all the planning and hard graft, and who sacrifices in a nuclear family.

Whipple “has a following (which apparently includes Queen Camilla), but I would argue that she is largely ‘forgotten’ by those who aren’t part of the Persephone catchment, as lovely as those readers are,” Dr Johnston added.

Publisher Persephone Books has released multiple editions of the author’s work (it’s how both Dr Johnston and I first encountered the writer).

Perhaps it’s time she was more widely recognised.

“Last year I gave a talk then held a discussion with sixth formers at Blackburn Central Library (where Whipple was from),” Dr Johnston recalled.

“We read a few of the short stories, and they absolutely loved them. So many of the female readers identified with [the] feelings of the young protagonists. I thought it was such a shame that this author, who still spoke so strongly to modern teenage readers, should be unknown to them, especially in her hometown.”

I’m already a huge fan, and can’t wait to get stuck into more of her novels.

If you’re wondering where to begin, the professor said: “I would start at the very beginning and read all eight novels, but not too quickly!

“My favourite is probably Greenbanks, but They Were Sisters is an astonishing proto-feminist work”.

Wherever you start, we doubt you’ll be able to stop.

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