Green Beans with Mushrooms and Bacon

This is a re-post but as you can tell, I have green beans on the brain!

Time for some good old Southern style cooking.  Green beans with bacon and mushrooms it is!  You can absolutely use fresh or frozen green beans for this; just cook them on the stove or in the microwave first until tender while the bacon is cooking.

Green Beans with Mushrooms and Bacon

4-6 slices of bacon
1 small can of mushrooms or about 1/2 cup fresh, sliced mushrooms
1-2 cans green beans of your favorite brand and style or fresh/frozen pre-cooked til tender on the stove or microwave

In a large pan fry the bacon, flip and continue cooking til just beginning to crisp.  Add the mushrooms. Continue cooking the bacon and mushrooms together until the bacon is dark golden and crisp and the mushrooms are golden.  Add the drained green beans.  Heat through, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Green Beans with Almonds

This is one of those sidedishes you don't really use a recipe for, but just throw together when you need something quick and easy to go with the meal. Like most foods of this sort I will tell you to "play with your food".   It doesn't matter if you want to use whole almonds, sliced almonds or blanched almonds.  Use what you have on hand. 

Also, the amount of salt and pepper and the amount of garlic you use is completely up to you.  A little bit of garlic for those that aren't sure and a lot of yummy garlic for those of that are!


Green Beans with Almonds

Green beans, fresh or frozen
Olive Oil
Butter, real
Garlic, fresh peeled and minced or in a jar
salt and pepper
almonds
optional: a dash of brown sugar or brown sugar substitute

In a saucepan on the stove over medium high heat, place your green beans with a bit of water.  Cover and steam or simmer until just tender and still bright in color.  Drain if there is any extra water.  Add a bit of olive oil and a pat of butter to the pan and stir fry style the beans.  Add your garlic.  Start with a small amount if you aren't a big garlic lover; perhaps 1/2 teaspoon or 1 small clove.  This will give barely a hint of garlic flavor to about 2-3 cups of fresh beans.  I would suggest about 2 or 3 teaspoons. 

If you wish, add a dash or sprinkle of brown sugar, and season with salt and pepper.  The brown sugar will give it a caramelized hint in flavor and is delicious but not necessary.  Keeping the heat at about medium, stir every minute or so until the beans start to show a little golden brown.  Do not over cook or your beans will be whimpy and your garlic can turn bitter if burned.  Now you can toss in the almonds as is - or - remove the green beans to a serving dish.  Add the almonds to the pan and toast them over medium heat until just starting to turn golden and then serve over the beans.   Serve hot.

Green Beans with Caramelized Onions - a Yummy Side Dish!

Reposted from 2013

A recipe that is hardly a recipe, but more of a 'throw it together' kind of side dish.  Except, I often have this for lunch.  Given the choice between sweets or vegetables, it would be a strange and odd day if I were to choose sweets!  Instead, when I find myself alone for lunch or dinner and I don't have to take any other family members opinions into consideration, I will whip up something like this.  I normally add fresh, minced or chopped garlic to this but on this particular day I did not.  So quick and easy and delicious.

Green Beans - frozen or fresh
1/4 large onion, sliced, per person
olive oil
butter - real
salt and pepper

There are many ways to make this dish - you can caramelize the onions first and add them to the cooked beans.  You can cook it all together in a pan and not let the onions get to a caramelized stage if you prefer translucent.  You can add more or less oil or butter.  I make these a number of ways. If you are using fresh green beans you can blanch them or pre-cook them in boiling water for a few minutes if you wish them to be very tender and not still hold their shape.  Frozen does not need any pre-cooking.  In a pinch, you could also use canned beans, drained well, if you needed to.  On this day I used frozen green beans and caramelized the onions on the first layer while the beans were steaming on top of them.

In a pan over medium high heat, add a bit of olive oil to cover the bottom and a 'dollop' of butter.  Add your onion, spreading out in a single layer.  Place beans on top and let it cook without stirring for a few minutes.  You will notice the onions you can see start to turn golden brown on the edges.  This is the caramelization process.  When they start to get dark brown and the aroma from your pan is 'sweeter' then you can start to turn the onions over.  Cook the beans and onions, flipping onion pieces over and gently making sure the bigger pieces are on the bottoms.  As the onions finish cooking, so do the beans.  Season with salt and butter to your own tastes.  Sometimes I add fresh garlic to this and brown the garlic during the last 4-5 minutes of cooking.  I've also often added sliced mushrooms at the same time as the onions and once in a while, added toasted sliced almonds.

Quick Side Dish! Grilled Zucchini

This is another recipe that isn't even really a recipe.  This post is more of a 'reminder' or to help you brainstorm; got zucchini? Need a side dish?  Just grill it!

The thing about this side dish is really all you need is oil, salt and pepper.
But if you have Italian salad dressing in the refrigerator, heck, use that.
Got another dressing?  Ok.
No dressing?  Just drizzle with oil and season with a couple items from your cupboard.  Some dried Italian Seasoning hiding up there?  Great.
Mrs. Dash? Maybe a garlic pepper blend? Go for it.

You also have options for marinating it...  or not.

It will have more of the flavor of the spices if you've used them, but it's not necessary.

So, grab a zucchini.
Slice it into 1/4" thick slices.
If you have skewers, skewer your vegetable slices on them.
If you don't, then use a piece of aluminum foil, folded over a few times to make it sturdy, or a metal grilling basket.
If you wish - slice some onions, peppers and/or whole mushrooms between the zucchini slices.  Or don't.

Not put them on a hot grill.  Cook til they are golden brown, flip and cook the second side.

Serve.

Seasoned and threaded on skewers... ready to jump on the grill for a few minutes

About 4-5 minutes on each side and you are good to go!

Pear Crisp - Can be made low sugar and flour free!

I make it sugar free and flour free by using a natural sweetener and coconut flour but obviously most people just use sugar and wheat based flour.  Use what you have.  These kind of grandma recipes also allow for you to use more or less ingredients based on your own taste and what you have on hand.  I had to use up 5 pears and they were all average medium size.  I also LOVE the oatmeal/cinnamon topping more than I do the fruit, so I make a nice amount of topping so it's nice and thick and crunchy.  If you are like my husband, you like fruit fillings more than crumble, crisp or pie toppings and crusts; so if that's the case, just half the topping ingredients. 



Pear Crisp

4-5 pears, peeled and sliced
2 t lemon juice
1 T sugar or sweetener
2/3 - scant brown sugar or sweetener
1 1/4 - 1 1/2 c oatmeal
1 1/2 T coconut flour (or 3 T flour)
1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 t ground ginger
3 T butter

Place sliced pears into a baking dish approximately 8-9" square or the equivalent.  Drizzle and sprinkle the lemon juice over the pears.  In a bowl, mix together the sugars, oatmeal, coconut flour and spices.  Cut in the butter with your fingers until crumbly.  Layer evenly over the pears and bake at 350 for approximately 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.  Let cool completely before serving.  Great alone or with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, etc.

Sliced pears in a dish and ready to be sprinkled with lemon juice

Oatmeal and sugar with spices... mmmm

Cut in the butter til crumbly

Topped and ready to bake!

Let cool completely before serving or til just barely warm as this allows the fruit to 'set up' and thicken a bit.