Green Bean Casserole- No Cans Used!

Welcome!

I am a sucker for homemade things so when I thought about green bean casserole at Thanksgiving I thought- I could totally make that from scratch!

I grabbed my cooking bible- The New Best Recipe- and was set.
I was in love! So different from what I was used to, but wonderful.
The sauce was so fresh and creamy and the beans had a great slight crisp to them.


Most of my meals are planned while I am walking around the grocery store. This time I waned to make steaks for the husband and needed something fun to go along. So, I made the casserole.

It takes maybe a half hour from start to finish, including all of the chopping.

I am new at this whole cooking and photographing thing. It was not easy!! I think I am going to have to take only pretty photos of the finish product and snapshots of the process.

So, here is the casserole.

I will post the exact recipe later.

Along with our beans we had loaded mashed potatoes and steak.

Mushrooms- recipe actually calls for cremini but I used button
Fresh green beans with ends trimmed

small red onions
use any onions you have or shallots

Coat onions with flour-salt and pepper Fry onions until a light golden brown being sure not to burn them
Set aside on a paper towel and wipe out skillet

Brown mushrooms for about 8 minutes
Heat the butter over medium heat-when foaming subsides add onions and cook until the edges brown
Add 1 T flour and garlic

Add beans and bay leaves
Add cream and chicken broth- stir

Cover and cook until the beans are partly tender, but still crisp in center- about 4 minutes.

Add mushrooms to beans and cook uncovered until beans are tender- about 4 minutes.
Remove bay leaves, season with salt and pepper if needed and top with onions

Green Beans are happier with fried onions on top!

Mashed potatoes filled with goodness!!
Want to make perfect mashed potatoes?! Here is what you need to do.....
Peal and cut potatoes into chunks
Add to a pot of water
Cover and turn stove to med-high
Once the water starts to BOIL turn your burner to low/simmer and cook for 12 minutes
Drain and set back on stove for 2 minutes to dry

That is all there is to it- they will be perfect every time!

The potatoes new lovers. I don't measure with these- I just throw in and it works. So, weather you want tons of flavor or just a little you are in charge.

I usually mash my potatoes in the mixer, but for this meal I needed to do them as quick as possible. I threw in all the ingredients at once and mashed away. If you don't have a masher like this- get one they are awesome- it was only a few bucks at the store.

The beans complete with the fried onions-I'm drooling now

Pictures don't really do it justice. It was so good!

Cooking a meal like this is so rewarding!!

Brian and I sat down to eat and we each had a few bites and sighed

What did you have for dinner tonight?
I'm going out with my in-laws

Back Then......

First of all these are all backwards- I will figure out how to load them in the correct order for next time.

This past weekend we went to Living History Farms while we had family in town. It was a lot of fun and I loved going around seeing how "cooking" would have been back then.

So, here is a post dedicated to what my cooking life would have been like "back then"

Much different from my KitchenAid! I did use one like this that was my Grandma's during college though.

I would have had chickens- I do wish this part was true. I would have been sad when I killed them and cooked them though.

I would dry my own spices and store them in this deal.

I could rely on cookbooks- in the 1900s

Nothing bad about home grown tomatoes!!

Not so sure about keeping eggs in the cabinet.....

I would have to make someone else do this job. Could you imagine turning this with your hand?!! Makes me quite thankful for my automatic one :D

I could handle this.

I remember in third-grade we churned our own butter at school and it was so fun. I am a bit to comfortable with just going to the fridge to get butter today.

My stove would have looked like this if I was a lady in the 1900s. However... I am sure I would have been dressed a little more covered.

Now we go way back to 1700s- 1800s didn't get uploaded.
My tools would have been scarce! I

Food would be cooked over an open fire. I would have probably caught myself on fire. Back then they dried all of their food so they always made soups to rehydrate it.

So, needless to say I am happy to live now :D I would love to go back and live for a few days though. I will be posting within the next few days a really great dinner that Brian and I had!

Please just leave a quick comment to just let me know that I have readers. Thanks!!!

Chicken Tacos

Here is a video from Nicole's Christmas gift.

Hope you enjoy- they are wonderful! No recipe for these, just throw in what you like.