Southern Style Green Beans and Bacon (using a pressure cooker)

October 20, 2012 by · 2 Comments

Pressure Cooker Green Beans

This is my adaptation of how Jim’s mom and grandmother make their green beans. If you have never had pressure cooked green beans you are truly missing out. It’s really hard to explain the difference in green beans that have been cooked in a pressure cooker, but this is how I will make them from now on. They taste different, the texture is different and they cook quickly. They are just really really good.

If you are new to using a pressure cooker (which I am), beans are probably a great food to start with. Beans cook relatively quickly, but they also don’t turn to mush quite as easily as some other veggies like zucchini or broccoli. However, you can really cook almost anything in a pressure cooker including a pot roast or a stew. I have a smaller pressure cooker, so I will stick mostly to side dishes for now. If I wanted to start canning or cooking a chicken or roast I would probably invest in a larger unit. For more information on using a pressure cooker I found a great site here. You definitely want to do some research on using a pressure cooker since you are dealing with very high heat and steam under pressure. I think many people are a bit scared about using a pressure cooker for the first time, (I sure was) but once you understand a bit of the science and mechanics it really isn’t a scary thing at all.

Pressure cooking can also be a very healthy way to cook. First of all, the food that you put in a pressure cooker is typically fresh and unprocessed. Because it is a very quick cooking method you also are able to get meals on the table quicker and for a busy family that can mean less meals out of the house. Also, food just tastes better to me in a pressure cooker and therefore I want to eat my veggies more. I don’t feel the need to add as much salt or butter or oil or sauces to my veggies cooked in the pressure cooker. The downside of pressure cooking is the same as any high heat cooking method in that you do cook some of the minerals and vitamins out. However, because it is more of a steaming method you don’t lose as much as you might in other methods that might use more liquid. All in all, my thing is that it makes veggies taste better without the need for as much seasoning and that is a win.

One other advantage of pressure cooking is that the quicker cooking time means less energy used.

We served these beans with some fried chicken, baked beans, deviled eggs, and blueberry muffins. This was such a great meal. Definitely what I would consider a weekend meal or a Sunday dinner type of meal. Not the healthiest, but all home cooked and a great way to start the week.

I hope you will try this method. I know you can buy pressure cookers that will work great for side dishes like this for as little as 20 dollars at stores like Target or on Amazon. I love mine I consider it an essential tool in my kitchen these days!

For some other wonderful green bean recipes check these out…

Green Beans and New Potatoes
Roasted Green Beans and Cherry Tomatoes
Haricots Verts Almondine

Enjoy!

Note: For a healthier version of these beans, omit the bacon and add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the cooking liquid. You can also completely omit the oil and they will still be fine. You can also substitute broth for water – just be careful with the salt.

Southern Style Green Beans and Bacon (using a pressure cooker)
 
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Ingredients
  • 1.5 pounds fresh green beans, end removed, snapped in half and washed
  • 3-4 slices of bacon cut into 1 inch pieces
  • ⅓ cup diced onion
  • salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste
  • ½ cup water

Instructions
  1. Cook bacon in the bottom of the pressure cooker. Towards the end of cooking the bacon add the onions and sauté for another minute or so. Add green beans and toss with the bacon so that the beans are lightly coated with some of the bacon grease. Add water. Cook beans for 5 minutes under pressure according to your pressure cooker directions. Season to taste.

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Haricots Verts Almondine

April 23, 2012 by · 11 Comments

This recipe is from Kelsey Nixon and its one that she prepared on her new show Kelsey’s Essentials. On the same show she also made an apple tart that looked amazing that I will probably make some other time. This recipe caught my attention because I already had all the ingredients and I am always looking for new ways to prepare veggies. The lemon juice gives this dish such a nice fresh flavor and the nuttiness from the toasted almonds helps to create a wonderful sauce along with the butter and shallots. We will be making this dish again and again.

I always have a bag of Trader Joe’s haricot verts in my freezer and if I can’t get farm fresh green beans this will do just fine. I like them because they are nice and thin and they taste great. If you would like some other great green bean recipes you can try these green beans and new potatoes from Paula Deen (our favorites) or these roasted greens with cherry tomatoes. My mom told me that she found a recipe for grilled green beans so if we make those I will add them soon. I like to grill or roast anything that I can so they sound great to me!

Green Beans on Stove

A few people said that they liked the pictures of the animals so I thought I would share this cute little picture. Last week the girls and some of their neighborhood friends made a little store in our garage selling “salads” made up of grass clippings and leaves. I let them leave their store in the garage overnight because they said they wanted to play with it all again tomorrow. So the next day I went into the garage to pull something out of the freezer and this is what I saw….I just had to get a picture to show them.

He was soooo cute. I left the garage door open so he could hop out. Hopefully he was ok. I was a bit worried, because clearly he separated from his mom. The little red cup was filled with grass and it was all gone when he finally hopped away. He must have been hungry!

For a real green dish, definitely try these Haricot Verts Almondine. They will become a new favorite in your house…even your little bunnies will probably like them!

Enjoy!

Haricots Verts Almondine
 
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Recipe type: Side

Ingredients
  • Kosher salt
  • ¼ cup almonds
  • 1½ pounds haricots verts (French string beans), root ends removed
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1½ tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 shallots, minced
  • Freshly cracked black pepper
  • ½ lemon, zested and juiced

Instructions
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
  2. Heat the almonds in a saute pan until lightly browned and fragrant – about 3-5 minutes. Chop the almonds up fine and set aside.
  3. Cook the green beans for about 3-4 minutes in boiling water. Kelsey cooks hers for about 2-3 minutes, but I like mine just a little less crisp. Immediately plunge in ice cold water to stop the cooking process. Remove from the water and gently pat dry.
  4. In the saute pan melt butter and cook shallots until browned, about 3-5 minutes. Add the green beans and toss in the shallots and butter. Add the lemon juice and zest and cook another 1-2 minutes until everything is heated through.
  5. Remove beans from the heat and toss with the almonds before serving.
  6. Enjoy!

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Balsamic Grilled Chicken over Roasted Vegetables and Lemon Pasta

October 15, 2011 by · 11 Comments

I like to think of this type of dish as a layered dish. One layer is your starch, another layer is your vegetable and then the third layer is your protein. This is a complete meal and when we layer all three types of food (our protein, carb and veggie) you get so much flavor and end up feeling full and very satisfied when the meal is over.

To get the most health benefits you will want to pack a layered dish with as many healthy foods as possible. A good example of this would be chicken breast (a lean protein) veggies roasted in a little olive oil and some seasonings and something like brown rice or whole grain pasta. There are some great whole wheat pasta options out there and if you are a bit averse to the whole wheat you could always try Barilla’s Plus Pasta. My girls don’t like whole wheat pasta, but they don’t notice a difference with the Barilla Plus.

Another layered meal option might be brown rice, sautéed peppers and onions with some salsa and jalapeno and then some black beans or grilled chicken (or both). Top that off with a bit of cheddar cheese and cilantro and you have another great “layered” meal option.

This particular meal is one of my absolute favorites and I love all the flavors in here so much. I roast one red pepper, an onion and a bag of frozen broccoli from Trader Joe’s in some olive oil and their Everyday Seasoning (any seasoning blend will work here.) I also pound out some chicken and  marinate it in some  balsamic vinegar with olive oil, salt and garlic. I cook up 16 oz of whole wheat pasta and then toss that with some olive oil, lemon juice and zest, garlic and salt. If you like a little heat you can add some red pepper flakes. Layer everything and then grate some Parmesan over top. This is so good, I can’t even tell you….you just have to try it!

My tip for grilling chicken is this. Trim the chicken as much as you can and then toss it into a Ziploc bag with your marinade. Take it out of the fridge about 20 minutes before you are going to grill it and pound it out with the flat side of a meat mallet right in the bag.  You might have to move the chicken around a bit as you are pounding your chicken out and make sure there are no air pockets when you do this. Then let it sit to come to room temperature. Take it right out of the bag with some tongs and put it on the grill. Make sure to let as much of the marinade drip off your chicken as possible before you place it on the grill. I also like to massage the marinade into the chicken as much as possible after you pound it out. Also, I usually put a decent amount of salt in my marinade. I really think doing all of this makes my chicken exceptionally moist and pounding it out makes it cook nice and evenly. I will never place another piece of chicken on the grill again without pounding it out and this method (with the Ziploc bag) makes the process really easy.

So here is the recipe. I have to say, this is one where you can really change things up and you almost can’t go wrong. The one thing you do still have to be careful of is portion size. I find that if I go easy on the starch and heavy on the veggies I still get at least one or two pieces of pasta in every bite.  Enjoy!

Balsamic Grilled Chicken over Roasted Vegetables and Lemon Pasta
 
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Recipe type: Main

Ingredients
  • 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • 16 oz whole wheat pasta (I like to use rotini or penne)
  • 2 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • ½ tsp lemon zest
  • ½ tsp dried basil
  • 1 red pepper cut into strips
  • 1 medium onion cut into strips about the same size as your pepper
  • 1 lb frozen broccoli florets
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp Trader Joe’s Everyday Seasoning (any seasoning blend will work here.)

Instructions
  1. Trim chicken of all fat and place in a ziploc bag with next 5 ingredients. Mix everything in the bag and make sure that the marinade is evenly distributed to coat the chicken. Let this marinade in the fridge for about 2-3 hours ideally. About 30 minutes before you are ready to grill, take the chicken out of the fridge and pound out right in the ziploc bag to about ½ inch thickness (make sure there are no air pockets in the bag when you are doing this and use the flat side of the mallet.
  2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Set grill to medium high temperature.
  3. Place veggies on a large baking sheet and toss in olive oil, everyday seasoning and salt. Toss this mixture until everything is thoroughly coated. If you feel like your veggies need more oil, add, but be careful not to add too much (just enough to coat evenly.)
  4. Roast vegetables for about 20-25 minutes stirring every ten minutes.
  5. Grill chicken until thoroughly cooked and then slice lengthwise.
  6. Cook pasta according to directions and when done, toss with the remaining olive oil, garlic powder, kosher salt and pepper.
  7. Layer the pasta, roasted vegetables and then sliced chicken. Grate parm over top and enjoy!

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Zucchini Cheddar Drop Biscuits

August 31, 2011 by · 10 Comments

I was born and raised in Upstate New York, but I swear somewhere inside of me there was a Southern girl who was just waiting to break free.

I love the warm weather and I honestly just can’t take the snow anymore for more than a day or two per winter.  Collard Greens and Country Ham are two of my favorite foods.  Savannah is  my favorite city ever, Paula Deen is like a long-lost Aunt, and when I was growing up I tried to talk with a Southern Accent – “hey y’all, what are ya fixin to do?”…not kidding about that one.  Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t trade my childhood in NY for anything, but I love everything about the south.

Good biscuits are a staple of southern baking.   While these biscuits aren’t what I would consider classic southern style, they are wonderful and a great summer time treat.  We had these with a spinach salad when I was at my mom’s house and it turned out to be a wonderful and very satisfying meal.  The biscuits actually reminded me of Red Lobster’s Cheddar Bay Biscuits with some Zucchini thrown in for good measure..  These had so much flavor and they were quite simple to make.

If you are looking for a nice accompaniment to a summer meal try these zucchini cheddar biscuits!  The southern girl in me says that you should DO IT today ya’ all:-).

Zucchini Cheddar Drop Biscuits

Adapted from A Cozy Kitchen

Preheat over to 450 degrees

3/4 c grated zucchini
2 tsp salt, divided
1 c freshly grated cheddar
2 1/2 c  of flour – White Lily is great for biscuits
1 Tb baking powder
1/2 c butter, cold and cubed
1 c milk

Grate the zucchini and drain water out using a tea towel or cheesecloth. In a small bowl add a 1/2 tsp of salt and a small amount of flour.  Mix well and let stand for about 5 minutes.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt and combine with a whisk. Quickly add the cubed butter to this mixture and break up with your hands until they’re the size of small peas.

Add milk, zucchini and cheddar until moistened.  Drop batter, using two tablespoons, on a baking sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until the tops form a nice golden crust.

Enjoy!

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Broccoli in Herbed Butter

August 16, 2011 by · 6 Comments


(Disclaimer: the phone rang while the broccoli was steaming and it did get overcooked a little bit.  It was still delicious, though:-))

Have you ever had a dish served a certain way that it changed your whole outlook  on it?  I remember my husband didn’t like asparagus until he had it served in a butter and breadcrumb mixture.  His response was “well, anything tastes good drenched in butter.”  Today he will eat it steamed with nothing on it but a little salt and pepper so you can tell he has come a long way.  I think we do that with our kids, too.  We put cheese sauce on their veggies so that they will eat them.  Eventually they will learn to like their veggies and maybe even without the cheese sauce.  I put a little butter and olive oil on my steamed spinach and its one of Ella’s favorite foods.  Without all of that I am not sure she would touch it.  Hey – we have to do what we do.

So, this broccoli recipe did that for me.  This is another one of my mom’s recipes that I always ask for and now I will have it.  I did like broccoli, but I didn’t LOVE broccoli before I tried this.  Now, it’s honestly one of my favorite vegetables – maybe even foods.  This broccoli is addictive.  Try it and I think it will increase your love for the green veggie threefold.

This post is linked to Cinnamon Girl Recipes Side Dish Saturdays.

Broccoli in Herbed Butter

1 lb fresh broccoli
2T butter –
1 1/2 t lemon juice
1 1/2 t finely chopped onion
1/4 t salt (opt.)
1/8 t. thyme, marjoram & savory

Steam broccoli. Melt butter and add the remaining ingredients. Toss with broccoli and serve.

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