Random Recipe: Green Bean Casserole

When you grow as many green beans as I try to, it helps to have a few ideas of things to do with them besides steaming. I adapted this recipe from one I saw many years ago. Unfortunately I didn't scrawl any attribution on the index card. Thanks and sorry, original recipe writer!

My beloved geek has a favorite cousin and the cousin has a wife who is quite a lovely person. Let's just call them K&K. She requested this recipe, so I'm posting it here, mostly because the font will be easier to read than my chicken scratch handwriting. Love you guys!

Green Bean Casserole

Ingredients

Main Ingredient:
1 lb of fresh green beans, ends cut off and sliced in half

To Make Cream of Mushroom:
1 pint of baby bella mushrooms, roughly sliced in quarters
2 tbsp butter
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp flour

Topping:
French-fried onion strings

Process:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees if you are cooking it immediately. Set up steamer (usually just a bit pot with a steamer insert and a lid) and start the long process of boiling the water.

2. Melt the butter in a saute pan on medium heat until sizzling.

3. Add minced garlic and stir until garlic just turns brown.

4. Add sliced mushrooms to pan. Push around the pan so that they all receive buttering.

5. Stir occasionally for 5-7 minutes, until mushrooms give out all their juices, which happens to be the best smell on earth. The water in the steamer should be boiling by now. Steam the green beans for 3-4 minutes (you want them to be slightly undercooked). Arrange green beans in your casserole dish (a 13x9 baking dish works fine).

6. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg to mushroom mixture. Stir it in.

7. Add chicken broth and heavy cream and stir until combined fully.

8. Sprinkle flour in, stirring the whole time so you don't end up with clumps.

9. Reduce mixture for 3-5 minutes until it has thickened slightly.

10. Ladle the mushroom mixture over the green beans.

11.  If you are cooking the casserole immediately, sprinkle the top liberally with french fried onions so that it forms a thin layer. Bake about 15 minutes, checking frequently, until french fried onions brown and the liquid in the casserole is bubbling vigorously. Serve and enjoy! If you are not cooking immediately, cover in foil and refrigerate once cool. Add french fried onions only before cooking, otherwise they will get soggy.

This dish is a staple in my house. If you try it, let me know how you like it!