Nothing Canned, Green Bean Casserole

If you never had green bean casserole made with fresh ingredients you are missing out. I had always made and grown up with the recipe on the back of the soup can but as I got conscious of ingredients I realized those onion things were terrible! This recipe I have slightly adapted from Alton Brown's Recipe on the Food Network site. I made some changes for our Gluten Free Friends and added some tips to make turkey day easier!

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

For the topping: (I like to make these 1 day in advance)

2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (or gluten free flour)
1/4 C bread crumbs (or gluten free bread crumbs- just take a pieces of gluten free bread, break into pieces and pulse in the food processor)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg
Nonstick cooking spray- we use Spectrum Organics

For beans and sauce:

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 pound fresh green beans, rinsed, trimmed and halved
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
12 ounces mushrooms, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (or gluten free flour)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup half-and-half

Directions

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.

Coat a sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place bread crumbs in a plastic bag. Beat egg in a small bowl. Combine the onions, flour, and salt in a bowl. Dip onions in egg. Shake egg coated onions in bread crumbs then evenly spread the onions on the pan. Spray the top of onions with a little cooking spray. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake until golden brown, approximately 30 minutes (keep a close eye to prevent burning). Toss the onions 2 to 3 times during cooking. Once done, remove from the oven and set aside until ready to use. *If prepared the day before let cool and seal in tupperware, try not to eat too many*

Turn the oven down to 400 degrees F.

While the onions are cooking, prepare the beans (this can also be done the day before). Bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in an 8-quart saucepan. Add the beans and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain and set aside.

Melt the butter in a 12-inch skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to give up some of their liquid, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and nutmeg and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and simmer for 1 minute. Decrease the heat to medium-low and add the half-and-half. Cook until the mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, approximately 6 to 8 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in 1/4 of the onions and all of the green beans. Pour mixture into buttered 9x13 pan. Top with the remaining onions. Place into the oven and bake until bubbly, approximately 15 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.

***You could certainly make all the components a day ahead and combine the green beans, mushroom sauce and all but 1/4 of the onions in a buttered casserole dish cold. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes then top with remaining onions and bake for 15 minutes and serve.***