Green Bean Casserole from Scratch

For Easter I wanted to tackle something new. Something that was traditional, but done in a new way. So, I picked Green Bean Casserole. That tasty concoction of cream of mushroom soup, green beans and crunchy fried onions. So I oven fried onions, made homemade cream of mushroom soup and even trimmed real (not canned) green beans. Although this took about 30 minutes longer than using all canned ingredients, it was awesome!

Green Bean Casserole – From SCRATCH

Topping: – (From Alton Brown)

• 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Nonstick cooking spray

Casserole – (adapted from Brown Eyed Baker)

• 2 tbs + 1tsp salt
• 2 lbs green beans, ends trimmed, and halved
• 3 tbs unsalted butter
• 1 lb white button mushrooms, stems removed, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg, ground
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 tbs all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Preparing the Topping

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.

Combine the onions, flour, panko and salt in a large zip top bag and toss to combine.

Coat a sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray and evenly spread the onions on the pan. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake until golden brown, approximately 30 minutes. Toss the onions 2 to 3 times during cooking.

Once done, remove from the oven and set aside until ready to use.

Preparing the Beans

While the onions are cooking, prepare the beans. Bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in an 8-quart saucepan. Add the beans and blanch for 5 minutes.

Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

Drain and set aside.

Making the Cream of Mushroom Soup

Melt the butter in a large pot or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms release their moisture, approximately 5-6 minutes.  I sliced my mushrooms a little big.  Make sure to chop them a little smaller.

Add the garlic and nutmeg and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and simmer for about 2 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low and add the half-and-half.

Cook until the mixture thickens and reduces to roughly 3 1/2 cups, approximately 12 minutes. Make sure to take your time here and let the sauce thicken before removing it.  Also taste the sauce, it may need salt and pepper.

Assembly of the Casserole

Remove from the heat and stir in 1/4 of the onions and all of the green beans.  Arrange in an even layer in 3-quart (or 9×13-inch) baking dish.

Sprinkle with remaining topping and bake until top is golden brown and sauce is bubbling around edges, about 15 minutes.

Serve immediately.

This was excellent.  I sliced my mushrooms a tad bit too large.  Next time I make this, the mushrooms are going to be chopped smaller.

Besides the size of the mushroom, this was an excellent side dish.  More tasty than the original.