Tuesday, November 18, 2008
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We share recipes and ask and answer questions from “How do you feed your family at night when you don’t walk in the door until 5:30 and you have a soccer game at 6 and piano lessons at 6:15 ... on opposite ends of town?” to “What’s your Thanksgiving menu this year?” to “Remember that punch you made at Christmas? What was the recipe?” So come on in to our virtual dinner group, pour yourself a glass of wine, and let’s start cooking together.
Tweak the green-bean casserole, if you dare
ReplyDeleteJoyce Rosencrans, Scripps Howard News Service
When it comes to Thanksgiving side dishes, the all-American vegetable avoiders will stick to the basics: mashed potatoes, candied sweet potatoes with marshmallows and the sacred green-bean casserole.
Those who can stand a little tampering with tradition might be interested in some variations.
Some green-bean-casserole connoisseurs insist on frozen French-cut green beans. It's all about texture. But others accustomed to cut green beans are of the opinion that French-cut beans seem just a little bit slimy in the soup mixture because the lengthwise style of slicing the beans exposes so much of "the inner bean."
Of course, green-bean connoisseurs would insist on cooking fresh green beans in favor of canned or frozen, no matter the style of cutting. That's fine if the beans were harvested while young and tender. Off-season like this, so many whole, fresh green beans are a tad too big and slightly tough.
ORIGINAL GREEN-BEAN CASSEROLE
Serves 6.
• 1 (103/4 -oz.) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 3/4 c. milk
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 2 (9 oz.) pkg. frozen cut green beans, thawed, or 2 cans cut green beans, drained
• 11/3 c. french-fried onions (canned), divided
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees (if the turkey's still going in the same oven at 325 degrees, that's OK).
Combine condensed soup, milk and pepper in a 1 1/2 -quart baking dish. Stir until blended. Stir in the thawed green beans and 2/3 cup of the canned crunchy onions.
Bake for 30 minutes or until hot. Stir. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 2/3 cup canned crunchy onions. Bake 5 minutes more.
Variations
Swiss-Style Green Beans: In step 1, add 1/3 cup sour cream and reduce milk to 1/3 cup. Add some thinly sliced celery, if desired. Stir in 1 cup shredded Swiss cheese. Optional topping: sliced natural almonds, along with the fried onions.
Tomato Alfredo Green-Bean Casserole: In step 1, substitute 1 cup prepared Alfredo sauce for the soup, and reduce milk to 1/2 cup. Mix well. Stir in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese and 1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, cut into slivers.
Almondine Green-Bean Casserole: In step 1, substitute 1 (0.9-ounce) package hollandaise-sauce mix for the soup, and increase milk to 1 1/2 cups. Mix well. Stir in 2 tablespoons melted butter and 1/4 cup sliced almonds. In step 2, top casserole with 2 tablespoons sliced almonds along with the crunchy canned onions.
Pepper Jack Green-Bean Casserole: In step 1, substitute 1 can of condensed cream of celery soup for the mushroom soup and decrease milk to 1/2 cup. Mix well. Stir in 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack with jalapeño cheese, 1 cup diced red bell pepper and 1 teaspoon ground cumin.
Cheddar Salsa Green-Bean Casserole: In step 1, substitute 1 can of Cheddar cheese soup for the mushroom, and reduce milk to 1/3 cup. Mix well. Stir in 3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese and 1/4 cup mild salsa.
Creamy Pesto Green-Bean Casserole: In step 1, substitute 1 cup prepared Alfredo sauce for the soup, reduce milk to 1/2 cup and mix well. Stir in 1/4 cup prepared basil pesto, drained.
I like the Green Bean Casserole, but more as the "have to have b/c it is Thanksgiving" than because I actually love it. I might have to try one of the new recipes and see how it goes.:)
ReplyDeleteI'm trying the green beans with sweet potatoes from the previous "great company recipes" blog. My husband just pointed out a Green Bean artichoke recipe from December Everyday Food.
ReplyDeleteThat sweet potato green bean recipe really was simple and delicious!
ReplyDeleteI actually made these green beans instead.
ReplyDeleteI got some cheese but not the heavy sauces of a green bean casserole.
Blue Cheese green beans
1 pound fresh green beans, cut into 2 inch pieces
1/4 cup bacon drippings
3 ounces crumbled blue cheese
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
salt and pepper to taste
Reggie this was the one in our paper today:
ReplyDeleteGreen Bean with Portobello mushrooms and bacon
# tbsp veggie oil divided
4 large portobello mushrooms, gills removed and caps sliced in 1/4 inch slices. Slice stems in 1/2 thick rounds.
1/4 c finely chopped Shallots
4 oz bacon 1 1/2 lbs green beans, trimmed, cut in 2 in lenghts and cooked until crisp -tender
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a 12 inch skillet and saute the mushrooms caps and stems over med heat stirring until softened about 2 min. transfer to a plate and set aside.
Add remaining oil to pan and cook the bacon until crisp. leave bacon drippings in the pan but drain the bacon. When cool chop and set aside.
Just before serving , heat skillet so that bacon drippings sizzle. Add green beans and mushrooms/shallots, cover and cook until heated, stir occasionally add bacon and season with salt and pepper.
I've never really liked green bean casserole. Probably because I don't like cream of mushroom soup, but Brendan always asks for it. More because I think it brings back memories. So I am going to try this one from Alton Brown, but I may cheat and use French's french fried onions instead of the homemade topping if I run out of time.
ReplyDeleteBest Ever Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
For the topping:
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Nonstick cooking spray
For beans and sauce:
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 pound fresh green beans, rinsed, trimmed and halved
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
12 ounces mushrooms, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup half-and-half
Directions
Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.
Combine the onions, flour, panko and salt in a large mixing bowl and toss to combine. Coat a sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray and evenly spread the onions on the pan. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake until golden brown, approximately 30 minutes. Toss the onions 2 to 3 times during cooking. Once done, remove from the oven and set aside until ready to use. Turn the oven down to 400 degrees F.
While the onions are cooking, prepare the beans. Bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in an 8-quart saucepan. Add the beans and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain and set aside.
Melt the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to give up some of their liquid, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and nutmeg and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and simmer for 1 minute. Decrease the heat to medium-low and add the half-and-half. Cook until the mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, approximately 6 to 8 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in 1/4 of the onions and all of the green beans. Top with the remaining onions. Place into the oven and bake until bubbly, approximately 15 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.