Not Your Grandma's Green Beans

I am not a dietitian or a chef. I am just someone, who at times, is quite obsessed about what my family eats. For the record, I want to say, "Just eat real." Stay away from processed, high fructose laden things disguised as food. Your body and taste buds will thank you.

I went out to my garden this morning and was delighted to find that I had green beans ready to pick. Fresh green beans for dinner! My husband and I grow a type called Tenderette. It is a thin stringless bush bean that has a very small bean inside. Growing up, we both came from households that grew white half runners. While we love the way our mothers cooked them, we have never missed the hours spent stringing and breaking.

We like to cook our skinny beans in a way that differs from the usual Southern way. A couple of years ago while at our farmer's market a farmer shared this recipe with me. (By the way, listen to the farmer when you buy his produce. He will be happy to offer ideas for preparing his bounty.)

Green Beans with Fresh Thyme

Ingredients:

1 pound of green beans washed, dried and strung if necessary. Do not break.

2 cloves of garlic-leave the skin on

juice from 1/2 fresh lemon

olive oil

salt

pepper

2 tsp. anchovy paste

a couple sprigs of fresh thyme- remove the leaves and discard the stem

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. While oven preheats toss the beans and garlic in a little olive oil, salt and pepper and place on a baking sheet. Bake beans stirring often until they begin to turn a little brown and caramelize. It will take 20 minutes or so. At this time, squeeze the lemon over the beans, squeeze the garlic out of the skin and toss with the beans. Sprinkle with the thyme.

I hope you enjoy them!

Those of you who know me will not be surprised to hear me say to cook something else in that oven while it's hot. You can accomplish 2 tasks and use your electricity wisely. While preparing my beans, I will also roast potatoes. If you decide to do this check the time for the potatoes and put them in first.

Roasted Dijon Potatoes

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 pound of small red skin potatoes, pricked with a fork several times

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Whisk together olive oil, mustard, cumin, and chili powder.

Toss the potatoes in the mixture to evenly coat. Pour into a baking dish and bake for 30-45 minutes, until potatoes are tender.