It's All About the Beans!

Mom's favorite just got a make over! The green bean casserole was first created in 1955 at the Campbell Soup Company by Dorcas Reilly. She was "to create a quick and easy recipe around two things most Americans always had on hand in the 1950s: green beans and Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup."

Many tastes have changed since the mid fifties so let us pay homage and honor our Mom's favorite by updating it and making it our own.

Ingredients:

1 lbs fresh green beans, rinsed, trimmed and halved

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 cups chicken broth
3 slices thick-cut bacon, diced

½ cup chopped yellow onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

12 ounces fresh button or cremini mushrooms, chopped

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

½ cup half-and-half

2 cups of ready to fry loose hash brown potatoes

Put the mushrooms and green beans in a vinegar bath to wash. 

 

Slice the onion in ½ inch slices then chop in equal size dice. Save anything more than a cup into a zipper bag and freeze. Mince the garlic.

Cut up the bacon. With a slotted spoon pull out the mushrooms, rinse with cold water then slice and dice.

Rinse off the green beans, snap the ends off and cut in half.

In large covered skillet heat 2 cups chicken broth. Bring to a boil and add the green beans, cover. Let boil for 5 minutes. Set up a large bowl with ice. At the end of 5 minutes pull the beans with a slotted spoon and put into the ice to stop the cooking. Reserve the broth in a medium bowl, set aside.

Fry the bacon in the skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. (Remove and cut into bits to return to the skillet.) 

 

Meanwhile, add the onions and cook until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, garlic and almond slivers. Cook for another 4-5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft. With a slotted spoon, transfer the mixture to a bowl.

Melt the butter in the same skillet and whisk in the flour. Once combined, continue whisking for another 2 minutes until the mixture has slightly deepened in color. Add the reserved chicken broth while constantly whisking to prevent lumps. Mix in the Half-and-half. Stir until nicely thickened.

Spray a 9 x 13 baking pan. Mix the blanched green beans, the onion-bacon mix and the chicken sauce together and pour into the pan.

In a clean skillet heat 2 tbs oil. When hot, scatter a very thin – single layer of loose hash browns across the pan. As soon as this browns on both sides, lay it on the top of the beans.

It may take a second skillet layer to cover. You want this to be almost like a brown lace of crunchiness across the top of the casserole.

Cover with foil. The day of the dinner, slide into a 350 degree oven to heat for about 35 minutes.

This fine old classic, re-envisioned for today will become “yours” to pass on and be remembered for.

slave can hardly wait to take this to the “Friendsgiving” pot luck dinner at Bad Dog this year!

Am so very happy to be able to present this dish to my Master Indy!

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon