Easy Green Beans (and some CSA info)

Before I get into today's recipe, I thought I'd mention this. A few weeks ago, I had a question from a reader about CSAs in southern Minnesota. If you're in the Mankato area, information on farms that offer CSAs can be found here. As always, I highly recommend the meat CSA from Chuck and Heidi Thompson at Thompson's Painted Hill Farm. We have not joined a veggie CSA this year mainly because I really enjoy going to the market every week and picking out my ow produce, but the three veggie CSAs always have a nice variety of produce at the weekly markets and I presume their CSAs offer the same variety.

For those farther east in the Rochester area, I would suggest contacting Just Food Co-op in Northfield. They had a CSA day a couple of weeks ago; 11 CSA farms participated to answer questions and discuss the benefits of CSAs. I am sure the co-op could supply you with lists of the farms with available shares. It looks like there were veggie, fruit, egg, cheese, and meat shares available, as well as combination shares, which makes me jealous, as we don't have cheese or such a large variety of fruits available in our area. Just a quick look over some of the local farmers shows that Hidden Stream Farm in Elgin offers a 15# sampler pack for $80, which is a great deal.

If you couldn't tell, I'm thinking spring. I can't stop. Every day brings us a little closer to green grass, warm weather, and fresh vegetables! I've been craving crisp green veggies for weeks now. What better way to celebrate the coming of spring than with a side of nice, simply prepared green beans?

Start off by heating some heavily-salted water. You want it to come to a low boil.

While your water is coming to a boil, grab your beans. Give them a little wash and trim off the ends.

When your water is hot, you can carefully add the beans.

Blanching the beans in hot water (and then moving them to cold) will seal in their freshness.

I blanched my beans for about 2 minutes. If you're not as into crisp veggies (as I know some people aren't), you could leave them in closer to 4-5 minutes.

After their time is up, use a slotted spoon or tongs to remove the beans from the hot water, and place them in a bowl of cold ice water. This will lock in their pretty green color.

Melt a chunk of butter in a saute pan.

This is homemade butter, by the way. Yum!

Let the butter melt fully. When it just starts to brown, you can add the beans.

It won't take long--about 5 minutes. Give your beans a few tosses to make sure they're coated with the butter.














Add a healthy sprinkle of salt and pepper and serve! In just a few minutes, you've got yourself a bright, beautiful, and delicious side dish perfect for any meal!

Recipe: Easy Green Beans
1 lb. green beans
salt, for boiling

ice water

1 tbsp. butter


Heat water and a large pinch of salt on the stove. Bring to a boil.

Clean and trim green beans. Toss beans into boiling water; let boil for 2-4 minutes, depending on your preference. Remove beans from hot water and place in ice water.

In a saute pan, melt the butter and olive oil. When the butter just begins to brown, add the green beans. Saute for 4-5 minutes. Salt and pepper the beans and then serve!