cheddar green bean casserole

By cindyandmojo

Ingredients

• 6 cups green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 4 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 3 shallots, minced
• 8-ounces Crimini or white mushrooms, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
• 1 cup low-fat milk
• 2 cups Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar, shredded and divided, 8-ounces
• 3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder

Details

Servings 10
Preparation time 40mins
Cooking time 65mins
Adapted from healthyseasonalrecipes.com

Preparation

Step 1

With Thanksgiving mere days away, I thought I better share this great make-ahead side I developed for

. It is a twist on the classic Green Bean Casserole. It tastes pretty similar to the real McCoy, except it doesn’t have canned soup or the processed canned fried onions. In fact, it’s made entirely from-scratch, and I added all-natural Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar, a glaring omission in the original recipe! So really, it’s much better than the original!

Makes:

To Make Ahead: Prepare it through step five in advance, and then just pop it in the oven when the Turkey comes out. Keep in mind, the casserole will take a little longer in the oven if it is cold when it goes in the oven.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Coat a 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray.

Meanwhile, bring several inches of water to a boil in a large saucepan fitted with a steamer attachment. Steam green beans until crisp tender, about 4 minutes. Carefully remove steamer from the saucepan, to stop the beans from cooking further.

Heat 4 teaspoons oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook until just starting to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, thyme, salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms have released their juices and the liquid has evaporated, 3 to 4 minutes. Add sherry and cook, stirring occasionally until the liquid has evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes.

Sprinkle flour over the mushroom mixture and stir to coat. Add broth and milk and bring to a simmer stirring often until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 ½ cups (6-ounces) cheddar. Add the green beans and stir to combine. Transfer to the prepared casserole dish. Top with the remaining 1/2 cups (2-ounces) cheddar.

Stir together the breadcrumbs and the remaining ½ teaspoon oil in a small dish. Add paprika and onion powder and stir until the breadcrumbs are evenly moist and bright orange. Sprinkle over the casserole.

Great looking website……. Just looking at it makes me drool!! Bravo!!!!

Wow I wish I would have found your site prior to Thanksgiving. I will surly make this as a side for Christmas. I love Cabot cheese, I can’t wait to make this.

[quote name=Lisa]Wow I wish I would have found your site prior to Thanksgiving. I will surly make this as a side for Christmas. I love Cabot cheese, I can’t wait to make this.[/quote]Lisa,

[quote name=Dee]This looks fantastic! I love how you changed the recipe, it definitely sounds for the better :)[/quote]I tried the original recently, and I realized it is so incredibly salty. Plus I don’t like to think about the calories. I hope you like this one. The cheese does add something special for sure. Happy cooking.

[quote name=Mary]Great looking website……. Just looking at it makes me drool!! Bravo!!!![/quote]Drooling is encouraged;)

I would like to know how far in advance can you make this casserole. The recipe just says ” Prepare it through step five in advance, and then just pop it in the oven . . .”. We’re having Thanksgiving at my in-laws (3 hours from where I live, by car) and I would like to prepare as many dishes as I can in advance! Thank you!

You can make it up to one day ahead. Happy cooking Susy!

Made this last year for thanksgiving and it come out sooooo good! I misplaced the recipe and just looked for over an hour online trying to find it again, so glad I was able to. This recipe will be a tradition for us, the family was crazy over it