Green Bean Casserole (From: Food is the Solution)

Every year on Thanksgiving, my family makes green bean casserole. It is one of my all time favorite dishes! I love green beans so to me it makes sense to add them to a creamy base and top with crunchy onions. When I was flipping through the Food is the Solution cookbook, I saw the recipe for green bean casserole and had to give it a try!

I basically followed the recipe, but there was one substitution I had to make so I changed it slightly. The recipe calls for dried shiitake mushrooms to make the broth base. I decided to use fresh mushrooms. I started by dicing a pack of fresh mushrooms and sautéing them in butter (can use vegan/or daily or oil). I kept cooking the mushrooms until the water cooked off and they started to brown. At this point, I added almond milk, nutritional yeast, vegetable bullion, pepper, and sage. I let that simmer together on the stove for about 5 minutes so the flavors could start to work together. While that was cooking, I trimmed, cut, and boiled fresh green beans for about 4 minutes. I drained them and rinsed them under water. Then, I added the green beans to an 8’’x8’’ casserole dish. I covered them with the mushroom broth and stirred in some of the French onions. I topped with the remaining French onions. I placed the dish in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 15 minutes.

I loved this version of green bean casserole! I even liked it more than the traditional one that my family makes. I felt this version had so much more flavor and the texture of the green beans were slightly crunchy (and not mushy like the canned ones). I loved the addition of sage. At first, I was afraid because I know sage can be overpowering. The ¼ tsp of sage was perfect for a hint of additional flavor!