Green Beans and Roasted Cashews with Lemon Garlic Sauce

Because this is a post about green beans, I could tell you about the time my Gramma stuck a green bean up her nose when she was a very little girl and had to be taken to the hospital to get it out. But I decided not to.

This method is a quick and delicious way to prepare green beans. You can do this for a weeknight supper or increase the amounts and prepare for a special meal. If you can believe this, Thanksgiving is coming up on us and to those old-fashioned American cooks, here’s something that’s healthful and flavorful that you can do without putting a gazillion extra milligrams of salt and grams of fat because two cans were opened…. a cream of something soup and french-fried something rings.  It’s time to lay those things to rest and use the always-delicious and reliable garlic-lemon combo to create  a super-quick sauce.

Have a lemon? Some garlic? Some good quality olive oil? You are set!

Whatever warm vegetable you use this combo with, whether it’s green beans, broccoli, asparagus or potatoes, adding all or part of the sauce to the still-warm veggies allows the flavor to get inside them, creating a dish bursting with flavorful goodness.

I cook green beans for 7 minutes with lid askew. Then I remove from heat with lid on fully and allow the beans to continue steaming for another 5 minutes. This is not the crisp-tender school of cooking. I like my cooked veggies cooked.

A traditional topping for green beans is almonds, either slivered or sliced.Try using another nut, like macadamias or cashews, and you’ll be very happy with the results.

Roast the nuts in a dry pan at 350 degrees for just a few minutes, 5 minutes or so, just until they start becoming fragrant. Make a little extra to keep in the fridge and use for topping salads or  throwing onto stir-fry or on ice cream  (oops, did I just give myself away? I think so).

Experiment with different nuts or pine nuts and enjoy the results!

Green Beans and Roasted Cashews with Lemon Garlic Sauce

Ingredients:

1 lb. green beans, trimmed

3 T. olive oil

2 cloves garlic

juice of a half-lemon

2 T. cashews, roughly chopped

salt & pepper

Directions:

Trim green beans and cut in half.

Place roughly chopped nuts in a pre-heated 350° oven for 5 minutes or until fragrant.

Fill saucepan with water to about 2 inches in depth. Bring water to boil in saucepan with 1 T. oil, one garlic clove split in two and a sprinkling of salt. When water reaches the boiling point, lower flame  and add beans. The water level should barely cover the beans. Increase heat to bring water to boiling, then lower to a gentle simmer.

Cook green beans for 7 minutes with lid askew.

Meanwhile, whisk remaining  olive oil with the juice of a half lemon, one crushed clove of garlic and salt & pepper.

Check green beans for desired level of tenderness and remove from heat, keeping lid on fully. Allow the beans to continue steaming for another 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, gently transfer beans to a serving dish. Toss the beans with half the sauce while still warm. Add more sauce to your taste. Sprinkle roasted nuts on top.

Serves 4-6.