How We Fixed the Holiday’s Most Divisive Dish

 More veggies, more flavor, and way less salt—this is green bean casserole done right.

It seems like every holiday season, every gathering is subjected to the "classic" green bean casserole. You know the thing - a giant dish of canned green beans, cream of mushroom soup, sometimes bacon, usually fried onion... Always buckets of salt, and the same cloying, sticky mass lacking both flavor and texture.

Ingredients:

2 14-oz bags frozen Prince Charles vegetable blend

1 smoked sausage rope

1 yellow onion

5 ounces shredded cabbage

2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus a little extra to grease the dish

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon dried parsley

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 cup low sodium broth (chicken or vegetable)

1 cup 2% milk

 salt and pepper, to taste

2 ounces shredded cheddar or Colby jack cheese (optional)

Tools:

Sauté pan with lid

Colander

Cutting board

Knife

Whisk

Tongs

Measuring cups and spoons

9x13 baking dish

The guys in particular are adamantly anti-green bean casserole. One (beloved) grandparent has made it the same Campbell's-approved way for FORTY FIVE YEARS. Dad won't even look at it any more, after a childhood of the siblings sneaking their portions onto his plate. The teen won't touch it, or any other canned vegetable, having been rather spoiled by a combination of hidden vegetables and as-fresh-as-possible at all other occasions. The rest of us look at it and kind of sigh internally, but will consume it in the name of family harmony. There are a few left in the family who truly enjoy it, but we feel it was long past time for a change. 

While it took us a while, we believe we have finally tackled the challenge of a non-standard green bean casserole. Something with visual impact, depth of flavor, and a variety of textures. And also a LOT less salt. Some of us are sensitive to it, after all. In short, we think we've devised something to put on the table next year that hopefully won't be ignored like the usual casserole. Try it on the in between so you have most of the year to make it yours, and you can really take the family by surprise next Thanksgiving.

The big difference maker in this is the fact we're using five vegetables instead of just the bland, mushy singular. Green beans are fantastic - but canned green beans are just sad. Fresh is always the best option, but in the names of frugality (out of season produce is expensive!), availability (does your grocery store have fresh wax beans? Ours doesn't) and convenience, we're opting to use frozen.

If you're not familiar with the Prince Charles blend of vegetables, it's just green beans, wax beans and carrots. We feel like the mix is normally a little light on the carrots, so we like to add in an extra handful of baby carrots. Whether or not you do the same is your choice.

As always, wash any produce that didn't make its way to you already washed, prepped and ready to eat.

Toss your green beans, wax beans and carrots into the sauté pan with just a little water (half a cup at most). Set the heat to medium, put the lid on the pan and let them steam for six to eight minutes.

While they steam, chop your onion, shred your cabbage and cut the rope sausage to whatever size pieces you prefer. In this case, larger chunks of sausage will not affect the cook time, since it's precooked. You can choose any flavor of smoked sausage, but we used the Hillshire Farm roasted garlic chicken sausage.

After you've steamed the vegetable mix, pour it all into the colander to get rid of the excess water, then transfer it to a large mixing bowl. If you started with frozen like we did, it won't be cooked through, and this is a desirable outcome. We don't want mushy green beans after they've been baked - the whole point here was to flip the script on squishy, sad casserole - so we don't want them floppy before they've even made it to the oven.

Put the sauté pan back on the stove and flip the sausage, cabbage and onion into it. Add the garlic. Replace the lid and allow that to cook, covered, until the onion is translucent, stirring occasionally. When the onions are translucent and the cabbage has changed color, use tongs to transfer all of it into the mixing bowl with the beans and carrots. Stir to combine.

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish. Pour the big mixing bowl of veggies into the baking dish and arrange them into an even layer. Add a little salt and pepper, if you so desire.

That same sauté pan, which probably would like to know when it gets a break by this point, needs to go back on the burner, still on medium. Melt the two tablespoons of butter and sift the flour into it, whisking it together to make a roux. As the color starts to deepen, add the smoked paprika, parsley and thyme. Continue to whisk to combine. Measure in your broth and milk, stirring constantly. Make sure to scrape sides and the bottom of the pan as you go, stirring until the sauce thickens.

Once your sauce has reached the desired consistency, pour it evenly over the vegetables and set that poor sauté pan down to cool (its work here is finally done for the day). Grate a thin layer of cheese over the top if desired, move the dish into the oven and allow it to bake uncovered for 20 minutes.

The holidays are all about tradition, but there’s nothing wrong with giving those traditions a little refresh—especially when it means bringing bold flavors and vibrant textures to the table. And just like a good holiday dish, your home’s appliances need a little care to keep everything running smoothly. Whether it’s a finicky oven or a fridge that’s working overtime, our team at Appliance Rescue Service is here to help. Because the only thing that should be bubbling over this season is your excitement—not your appliances!

Website

Call   (214) 599-0055

Additional Reading

Berry Bliss: A Delectable Mixed-Berry Clafouti Recipe

Ladle Love: Wholesome Potato Leek Soup Recipe

Fall Comfort Food: How to Make Perfectly Creamy Pumpkin Pasta

Spooky Sweet Halloween Brownies: A Fun Family Treat

Berry Cheesecake Swirls Add a Yummy Twist to Classic Halloween Brownies

The Halloween element of this recipe is purely optional and entirely based on the shape of the food... But being able to play around with festive shapes is the whole point of things like Christmas sugar cookies. Why not Halloween brownies? We vote to have a little bit of fun with it either way. 

This recipe can be a little messy, but embracing the mess before beginning allows you to enlist little helpers without any misconceptions about the kitchen staying clean.

Preheat the oven to 350, and line the half-sheet pan with a single sheet of parchment paper, leaving enough overlap to lift the cooked brownies out of the pan later on.

In the first mixing bowl, dump the box of brownie mix. We find it helpful to break up any clumps with a spoon before adding in wet ingredients, but if you plan to use an electric mixer, you can skip that step.

Add two eggs, a quarter cup of milk, a third of a cup of vegetable oil, and a third of a cup of unsweetened applesauce and mix until thoroughly incorporated. Be certain you're using unsweetened apple sauce and that it doesn't contain cinnamon - sweetened applesauce is far too much sugar for the already sweet brownie base, and cinnamon complicates the flavor profile.

Once your brownie batter is ready, pour it into the parchment-lined half-sheet pan. Use the back of a spoon to spread it around - or if you're feeling extra daring, tilt the pan until the brownie batter reaches the edges.

Drop the eight ounces of mixed berry flavored cream cheese into a second mixing bowl. We put the KitchenAid to work on this step. If the cream cheese spread is still very cold and not inclined to mix, wait for it to warm a few degrees. Inch it closer to the preheating oven if you need to, but don't let it melt.

Many grocery stores helpfully sell flavored cream cheese in seven-and-a-half or eight-ounce tubs. Try to avoid the whipped cream cheese spreads. They're much easier to mix into the cheesecake layer, but they don't set up quite right.

Add the vanilla extract and the remaining single egg to the cream cheese in the mixing bowl and stir well until it's all one consistency. This can take some elbow grease, which is part of the reason we used the stand mixer. Also, the mixer has an optional cover to prevent things like flour - or the powdered sugar coming in the next step - from getting all over the kitchen... which was the deciding factor. (We just learned we really hate trying to get powdered sugar off the edges of the window sill.)

Slowly add the cup of powdered sugar to the cream cheese mixture, stirring constantly. Try to avoid clumps of sugar, and be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you work.

Using a spoon, drop dollops of the cheesecake mixture onto your thin layer of brownie batter. As long as you're getting some to all sides of the pan, don't worry about uniformity - the messier, the better! After the cheesecake mixing bowl has been emptied, use a toothpick or skewer to marble the two batters together.

Set the pan on a middle rack in the oven for ten minutes. After the ten minutes are up, lower the temperature of the oven to 325 degrees and reset the timer for 30 more minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness before removing from the oven; the brownies may need another five minutes or so.

Remove them from the oven when done, and allow them to cool completely. The waiting is terrible, we know, but cutting into them too soon makes them fall apart.

Once you're sure they're cool, use the parchment to lift them from the pan. Use the cookie cutter to cut out your shapes, being careful to press around the edges instead of using your whole hand (the brownies may stick to your palm if given the chance).

We find it easiest to use a spatula to lift the cut brownies from the parchment to a platter, then break the discarded pieces into chunks and roll them up in the parchment to pour into a bag for storage. The broken brownie edges make fantastic ice cream toppings and milkshake mix-ins, so there's no sense in discarding them. ...If there are any left after the cutting process, at least. We find there is usually dramatically less than we thought we'd have. (The helpers are helping themselves while our backs are turned, we assume.)

We liked our little ghosts just as they turned out, but for extra fun, consider frosting them and adding themed sprinkles. You can also get creative with other shapes for any occasion—these brownies are versatile and perfect for any festivity!

Now that your kitchen is filled with the scent of fresh-baked brownies, here’s a little reminder: If you’ve noticed an appliance acting up while you were baking—whether it’s your oven, dishwasher, or anything in between—our team at Appliance Rescue Service is ready to help. From repairs to maintenance, we’ll have your home running smoothly again. Visit our website or give us a call, and we’ll be happy to assist!

Website:
Call: (214) 599-0055

Additional Reading
Household Hauntings: The Frightening Reality of Appliance Neglect

Ladle Love: Wholesome Potato Leek Soup Recipe

Purple People Eater Pieces