Lets be honest, the best part about Thanksgiving, or any holiday really, are the SIDES!!!! Sure, the turkey is pretty, and the center piece, blah blah, but the sides steal the show. EVER YEAR! I know when I scoop up my dinner plate, its like 5 sides, a roll (okay, two rolls), some deviled eggs, then if a piece of turkey fits on my plate I’ll squeeze that in too. Then you know, gravy over the whole thing.
When planning your holiday meal, you should always give special attention to the side dishes. Plan it so not everything needs to be in the oven, or even cooked. Have some salads, or make ahead dishes. It will limit the heat in the kitchen, and the stress while you prep. Also, ask your guests to bring a side! Don’t get too proud, everyone can use some help around this time of year.
Lastly, make sure you are using good quality ingredients. I know, I do love dishes cooked with condensed soups, but we are going to spend the last two months of the year, basically stuffing our faces with the best meals of the whole year. So, we should all take a little time to make sure the meal is as fresh as can be.
Take a little extra time and you will get a huge pay off in flavor. I am skipping the cream of mushroom soup in my Green Bean Casserole, and making it fresh. We aren’t going to go too overboard though. I may be crazy…and don’t shame me…but I LOVE canned green beans. So there, a little bit of ease, we aren’t trimming any fresh beans today!
So here it is, nearly all fresh, Green Bean Casserole.
The Process
Preheat your oven to 350.
Open and drain three cans of green beans. Pour green beans out into the casserole dish.
Rough chop the mushrooms and cook on medium heat in olive or vegetable oil until soft, about 5 minutes.
Add butter and flour to the mushrooms. Cook until flour is golden and butter is melted, about 2 minutes.
Whisk in milk, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Cook until your sauce is bubbling and thick. It should be the texture of a country style gravy. When you stick a spoon in the sauce it should coat the back.
Remove from heat and set aside.
Over the green beans spread 1 cup fried onions, and half a cup of shredded cheese. (Ok I used a heaping half cup of cheese).
Pour the sauce over the green beans, onions, and cheese and stir until completely mixed together. Stir gently so you don’t tear up the beans too much.
Put in the oven and cook for 25 minutes.
Remove from the oven, sprinkle remaining fried onions over the top. I just spread them all over, but you can put them around the edges for esthetic purposes IF you want. 🙂
Place back in the oven for 5 mins until the fried onions are golden.
OOOO Ya, check out this hot perfect side dish!! Yummmmm!
Recipe
Green Bean Casserole
Try this nearly all fresh casserole for your holiday table! You won't regret it.
Ingredients
- 3 cans Cut Green Beans
- 8 oz Fresh Mushrooms
- 6 oz Fried Onions Such as Frenchs
- 2 cups Milk
- 1/4 cup Butter
- 1/4 cup Flour
- 1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350
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Drain green beans and pour them into your casserole dish
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Sauté mushrooms in medium sauce pan with oil. Cook until soft.
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Add butter and flour to the mushrooms, cook until flour is golden and mixture is fragrant.
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Add milk, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to the mushrooms. Cook on medium heat until the mixture is bubbling, and thickened.
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Remove from heat.
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Add 1 cup of the friend onions and a large half cup of cheese to the green beans.
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Pour sauce mixture over the green beans and gently stir until incorporated.
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Bake for 25 min.
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Pull casserole out of the oven, and pour the remaining fried onions all over the top. Return to the oven for 5 more min until the fried onions are a dark golden color
