Green Beans = Num Num Num

Growing up, I had many issues with many types of veggies. Texture, taste, and most importantly, freshness and appearance. My parents always had a huge garden with many, many types of veggies and fruits during my pre-teen years in California . There is absolutely no comparison to having fresh veggies or fruits at your beck-n-call. But, like many foods, preparation and application is of the utmost importance to complement those nuggets of goodness that grow out of your backyard or your local farmer. My Sister-in law and my Brother-in law are fortunate to live in Chicago and have access to some outstanding produce markets. They posted some pictures on there Blog that I just have to share http://natekauffman.com/2010/08/09/chicago-green-city-market/ ,

Which brings me to my topic. FRESH GREEN BEANS!! Fresh from our garden straight to the dinner table. My wife's delight is her green bean plants and this year, for the 1st time, she is trying soy beans as well. Last night after returning home from the local farmers market she was able to harvest about 2 lbs from the garden. Last week we tried something a little new instead of the typical steam or boil. We tried "Green Bean Almandine" as a Saute. They turned out delicious and also very easy to make. last night, we ran into a little hitch though, no almonds! So, like many, who really didn't want to drive to the store, we left them out. The result, was still the same. Delicious little nuggets of crunchy goodness.

Fresh Green Bean and Garlic Saute'

Ingredients:

2 lbs of Fresh Green Beans

4 cloves of garlic Minced

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

Kosher Salt

In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt the butter with the garlic until the butter is golden brown and smells nutty; make sure the garlic doesn't burn.

Raise the heat to high and add the Green Beans, in batches if need be, flipping and stirring, until you start to see some searing marks on beans, about 1 to 2 minute. At this point you will want to add you kosher salt to taste. ( Important not to over saute because you want to maintain the crispness of the green beans)

Remove Green beans from pan to serving platter. I usually like to grab one bean to taste just after I plate to taste the seasoning. Garnish with a little more kosher salt if not to salty already as the green beans tend to absorb the salt pretty quickly.

We had this with some butter leaf lettuce and arugula salad from the garden. For the protein side of the meal, we just BBQ'd some Brats. I actually put the green beans in the bun with my Brat and ate them that way. I have to say it was strange, but pretty darn tasty.

So in closing, I think it would be a crime for me not to state, even if you live in Wyoming, Fresh produce can be had and enjoyed immensely. You don't need to live in the big city's near those wonderful market. Its would be great if we could but the fact is, we don't. But, you have options and you have opportunity's for saliva drooling freshness. Enjoy your summer! Enjoy your freshness!

Finito!