Green bean casserole is a Christmas dinner mainstay, but despite its light appearance, the traditional dish is unnecessarily heavy. Packed with saturated fat, artificial ingredients and a sodium, regular green bean casserole may be traditional but it’s still mostly from a can.

Make Grandma proud by getting even more rustic and hands-on than she ever did with green bean casserole by following this recipe from scratch with plant-based ingredients.

Traditional green bean casserole contains condensed cream of mushroom soup and French-fried onions. Condensed cream of mushroom soup contains about 100 calories per 1/2 cup serving as well as 6 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 870 milligrams of sodium and 5 milligrams of cholesterol. Ingredients include the likes of modified corn starch, wheat flour, monosodium glutamate, soy protein concentrate, dehydrated cream, yeast extract and flavoring. French fried onions contain 45 calories per 2 tablespoon serving, 30 calories of which derive from fat. Ingredients include enriched flour, palm oil, soy flour, salt and dextrose.

The nutritional profile of traditional green bean casserole isn’t so stellar, with sodium at an unnecessary high and too much fat concentrated in the crispy topping. The ingredients list is also far from “real”.

The following recipe fills in where traditional green bean casserole takes off. The butter is the only heavy component of this recipe, while the rest are mere veggies and natural flavors. Enjoy!

Lighter Green Bean Casserole

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion, sliced thinly
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup chopped crimini mushrooms
• 2 cups chopped celery root
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
• 1 pound fresh green beans, cut into

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large saucepan brought to medium heat, add 1/2 tablespoon butter and onions. Cook for about 1/2 hour, giving the onions a good mix with a spatula every few minutes, until the onions have caramelized to a brown tint but are not burned. Scoop the onions onto a plate and set aside. Using the same saucepan over medium heat, add the remaining butter and mushrooms. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, or until the mushrooms have reduced in size and are tender. Set aside on a separate plate.

Steam, boil, or bake the celery root until its pieces are completely tender and soft throughout. Once cooked, let the celery root cool down slightly before adding it to a blender with the garlic, nutritional yeast, sea salt and half the cooked mushrooms. Blend until smooth and creamy as well as liquid-like enough to be poured. Add 1 tablespoon of water at a time if necessary until desired consistency is reached. This will be the “cream” of the casserole. Set aside.

Meanwhile, bring a medium pot full of water to a boil. Add the green beans and let simmer for 6-8 minutes before draining the beans and adding them to an 8-inch x 8-inch casserole dish. On top of the beans, add the remaining mushrooms. Atop the vegetables, pour the celery root cream and use a spatula to lightly mix the cream into the vegetables. Top the ensemble off evenly with the caramelized onions and place into the oven uncovered for 25 minutes, or until the onions have crisped slightly. Enjoy!

Photo Credit: tomcensani

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The post Green Bean Casserole Recipe: Lighter, Healthier and Even More Delicious appeared first on EcoSalon.

It’s almost time to dust off the grill and de-web that patio furniture. With warm weather on its way, we’re itching for barbeque season. Whether you are planning a Sunday cookout, a pool party or gearing up for a Memorial Day gathering, we’ve put together an awesome menu of delicious, green recipes. Today we will start with a healthy and green alternative to a barbeque favorite — french fries.

Spicy Green Bean Fries

Why limit yourself to potatoes when you can turn just about anything into a “fry,” even green beans. This lean, green vegetable is not only low in cholesterol and fat, it’s also high in dietary fiber, protein and iron. Best of all, green bean season is starting, so they can be found at your local farmers market (keep in mind that they come in yellow and purple if you’d like a variety of colors). Kristen McCaffrey from Slender Kitchen created this tasty way to turn a power vegetable into a zesty barbeque appetizer!

Ingredients

1 lb. green beans, washed and trimmed
1 cup bread crumbs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 egg whites

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Stir together the bread crumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Place in a shallow bowl or plate.
3. Whisk together the egg whites until frothy.
4. Dip the green beans into the egg white and then roll in the bread crumbs. Place on the parchment paper in a single layer. Repeat until all the green beans are coated in bread crumbs.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes until green beans are nice and crispy, shaking the baking sheet once during cooking

Skinny Chipotle Ranch Sauce

Ingredients

1 cup of fat free sour cream
2 tbsp of olive oil mayo
1 oz package of Ranch Dip mix
1 tbsp of chipotle powder

 Combine ingredients and chill before serving.

–  Kristen McCaffrey

This article appears courtesy of Sierra Magazine

Image: Olibac

The post Crunch into Spring with a Green Bean Fries Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.