Recipe: Green Bean Casserole

One of my favourite things to do is search the web for recipes. Not necessarily to make anything, but I like reading and discovering new dishes. I also spend a lot of my time on various food blogs, wistfully scrolling through mouth-watering pictures of food. 

When I cook, I don’t normally use a recipe. My mother’s style of cooking involves pinches of this, dashes of that and tasting along the way – a habit that I have inherited now that I do my own cooking. It can be frustrating for some when I’m asked for a recipe since I really don’t know how to give units of measure when I throw something together.

Every now and then I come across a recipe that I’m curious about – either it sounds really delicious or I’ve never heard of it before and I want to try it. The latter was the case when it came to Green Bean Casserole. Before this week I had never heard of green bean casserole and had no idea such a dish existed. So, armed with a pile of green beans that were in desperate need of being used, and a recipe from Campbell’s which is apparently THE recipe for this dish, I attempted it for dinner the other night. 

The original recipe called for French fried onions, but it was rainy and cold outside and I really didn’t feel like running to the store. A quick online search for an alternative ingredient and I decided to try crushing potato chips over the top since many people suggested this made it even better. I also went ahead and sprinkled Italian seasoned breadcrumbs as well to give it extra flavour and crunch. I was worried that the dish would turn out bland so I grated sharp cheddar cheese into the dish as well as to top the crumb mixture. This turned out to be a great addition as it really held the soup to the beans.

Once baked, the casserole turned out pretty good. The beans stayed crispy and the crushed chips gave it extra flavour with the muted mushroom soup. The soup itself was still a bit runny for my liking, but it made a great sauce to be spooned on top once it was portioned out. I served it with panko crusted baked fish and some steamed rice, and it was an excellent vegetable side dish. The original recipe suggested that you could use canned beans to make this dish, but I would advise against it if you like some crunch to your vegetables. I feel like it would be too mushy along with the soup mixture, and would make for a very soft side dish. 

I liked the dish enough to add it to my repertoire of vegetable sides. It is a dish that is versatile to be paired with a variety of meats and starches, and was a great way to get the boyfriend to eat his vegetables!

Loosely adapted from the Campbell’s site, this is Neurotic Green Bean Casserole

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (I used 98% Fat Free)

1/2 C milk (I used soy)

1 tsp soy sauce

4 C cooked cut green beans

1/2 C shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Sprinkling of Italian breadcrumbs

1/2 C crushed regular potato chips

Ground black pepper to taste

1.       Stir the soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, beans and half the cheese in a 2 qt casserole dish.

2.       After prepping the beans, steam for approx. 3 minutes to start the cooking process but maintain crunch.

3.       Drain the beans and stir in soup mixture.

4.       Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes or until the bean mixture is hot and bubbling. 

5.       Stir the mixture.  Sprinkle with a layer of breadcrumbs, potato chips and the remaining cheese.

6.        Bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese has a bubbly crust.

Campbell’s Classic Green Bean Casserole
http://www.campbellskitchen.com/recipedetail.aspx?recipeId=24099