I am not 100% certain why we only eat this during the holidays. It is absolutely so delicious and satisfying. One wouldn’t imagine they are just having a dish of green beans and mushrooms because the flavors are so great and the dish is WAY more than just the typical boring steamed green beans. If you have never had this dish, you should definitely try it this holiday season.
Choosing the beans:
You can go with regular green beans or French green beans. The french green beans are thinner and will need to be blanched for a shorter amount of time than regular green beans that are larger and harder.
Blanching the beans:
Blanching the beans is a really quick cook that is stopped by adding the beans to an ice water bath. Blanching the beans help them to stay pretty sturdy and crunchy even after baking them in a sauce in the oven. If you don’t like overcooked green beans then this dish is certainly for you.
Cream of Mushroom:
The white button mushroom cream sauce has garlic, onions, tuscan seasoning, nutmeg, heavy cream and butter that makes for a delicious addition to the beans. I am excited to play with the flavors in this sauce in a few months by adding white wine and maybe even a little heat to completely make this recipe my own.
Crispy Fried Onions:
The final addition to this dish is crispy fried onions. I use fried onions that are already made but if you want to, you can make your own. I go for French’s which is my favorite brand. I mix the onions with Panko breadcrumbs to top the beans. This gives a great texture and flavor element to this dish that makes it well balanced and delicious.
Ingredients
- 1lb green beans (left whole)
- 6 cups water
- 12 oz white button mushrooms (sliced)
- ¼ medium onion (diced finely)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- ¼ tsp Tuscan seasoning
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp flour
- ¾ cup chicken or vegetable stock
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- Pinch of ground nutmeg
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- ½ cup seasoned panko breadcrumbs
- 6 oz @frenchs Crispy Fried Onions
Instructions
- In a heavy stock pot, bring water and a heavy pinch of Kosher salt to boil over medium heat.
- Rinse green beans and add them to the pot once the water begins to boil. Cook covered for 4-5 minutes. (If using French green beans, cook covered for 3-4 minutes) Immediately remove the beans from the water with a pair of tongs to a separate bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Remove beans from the water to a baking tray lined with paper towels so they can drain. Discard the water the beans were boiled in and return the pot to the stove.
- Over medium heat, add olive oil and diced onions to the pot. Toss the onions with a spoon in the oil and allow them to sweat for about 1 minute. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add mushrooms to the pan and toss with the onions and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and allow the mushrooms to release all their water. Add flour to the pan. Stir and cook the flour for about a minute.
- Add in chicken stock to deglaze the pan. Add in heavy cream and give the pan a good stir. Add in Tuscan seasoning and more cracked pepper. Cook the sauce over medium heat until it reduces and thickens.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Once the sauce is thick, turn the burner off and add in the green beans. Gently toss the beans in the sauce until they are fully coated. Transfer the beans to a casserole dish.
- In a medium bowl, add panko breadcrumbs and onions and gently toss with a pair of tongs to combine. Liberally top the green beans with the onions and breadcrumbs until the entire top is covered. Bake the casserole for 10-15 minutes or until the onions and panko are golden brown. Serve hot.
