When it comes to holiday cooking, there are few things you can’t live without. For us, it’s green bean casserole. OMG. Yes!
Several years ago, I started questioning why we used canned soup, and how I could make it fresh without preservatives or other questionable ingredients, and I’ll be honest with you…I nailed it.
This is my simple, delicious, give me another serving green bean casserole. Feel free to embellish if you want, but it’s pretty perfect just as it is.
I recommend using regular, fresh green beans. French beans are a bit delicate for this dish, and it won’t taste as good if you use frozen or canned beans.
Ingredients
3 lb fresh green beans, stems snapped off
2 pkg sliced mushrooms {cremini, shiitake, portobello, button, or any mix of what you like}
1 medium sweet onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups shredded white cheddar or your favorite cheese {I used Comté)
2.5-3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup milk, half and half or coconut milk
4 Tbs butter
1 Tbs olive oil
1/4 cup GF flour
3 Tbs fresh thyme
Salt & Pepper
Optional: Smoked Paprika or Ancho Chili Powder
Medium container Thai Fried Shallots (found in Thai food section or in Asian markets. These typically do not have gluten. Please read ingredients to make sure)
Directions
There are 3 main components of this dish: The beans, the mushrooms, and the sauce.
- Rinse green beans and put into large stock pot. Cover with cold water, add a few pinches of salt, cover and bring to a low boil/simmer for about 12-15 minutes. This will partially cook the beans, so baking will take less time.
- While the beans are starting to cook, sauté the mushroom mixture. Start with 2 Tbs butter, plus 1 Tbs olive oil on medium-high heat. Add sliced onion, all mushrooms and garlic. Stir every minute, or so, adjusting heat as needed. Add a bit of salt & pepper. Once onions are completely wilted and mushrooms are cooked, turn heat off and set aside.
- After beans have been pre-cooked, turn heat off, and strain, letting all of the water drain off. Place beans in a casserole dish, and top with mushroom/onion mixture.
- Make the sauce. This sauce is based on making a roux, which is the foundation for thicker sauces like gravy, stews and cheese sauces. This technique is easier than you think, and it will make you feel like a total badass! Check out this video before you start, and watch how the sauce builds up over the course of a few minutes.
Once you learn this technique, you will be able to make a whole new category of sauces!
5. Start with 2 Tbs butter over medium-high heat. Make sure it’s hot enough to melt the butter fairly quickly without burning it. *If your butter turns brown, stop and throw it out. Start over with less heat.
6. Add the GF flour, and whisk together with the butter. It will form a clumpy paste.
7. Slowly add some of the chicken broth, about 1/2 cup at a time, continuing to whisk constantly. It will bubble up at first, then start to thin out the roux into a thick sauce that looks like cake batter. Keep adding the broth until it starts to look more like liquid than batter.
8. Add 1/4 of your shredded cheese, whisking it into the base until it is all melted in. Keep adding the cheese in steps until all cheese has been incorporated. Add milk, half and half or coconut milk. If your sauce looks too thick, add a bit more broth. If it gets too thin, let it cook at a low-med simmer until it thickens.
9. Add chopped fresh thyme, salt + pepper, and if you like a little spice, a few dashes of paprika or ancho chili powder.
10. Pour the sauce over the beans + mushrooms, spreading it around to cover the top evenly.
11. Cover with foil and bake at 350* for 35-40 minutes, until beans are tender. Remove foil, top with shallots/onions and bake another 4-5 minutes to get them toasty, but be careful not to burn them.
Serve and enjoy!
Want to make this ahead of time?
You can! Instead of baking it now, cover with foil and refrigerate up to 24 hours ahead of time.
Amy Jo Accardi is a Vibrant Life Stylist, Restorative Diet Expert. Chinese Medicine Practitioner and Cooking Instructor. She supports those living with food intolerances, IBS, IBD and Chronic Illness to live better and create the life of your dreams.
She works with clients in person in her Boston studio and online through live workshops and retreats.