July 27, 2013
I’ve got some woody and long (insert joke here) green beans this late in the season. I usually like to use them raw (ok, one more joke) in dishes like my Chopped Salad, but in their current state they really need to be cooked.
For this easy recipe, I just grabbed a couple other ingredients from the harvest basket, added a pantry staple or two and turned lackluster beans into something delicious.
I love these flavors together because it’s like a trip to Spain on a plate; look at all the money I just saved you? Spanish sherry is a pantry staple I depend on, my longtime favorite is Bodegas Dios Baco, S.L. It’s a bit of an initial investment ($20-25), but it is one of those ingredients that lasts forever and takes an ordinary dish to extraordinary with just a splash (or two).
Sherry Drenched Green Beans and Cherry Tomatoes
2 cups green beans, cut into 2” pieces
Grab your green beans and chop them into two-inch pieces. Bring a medium sized pot of water to boil, adding a hefty dose of salt (I’m talkin’ a lot of salt here, like a handful). Cook the beans in the salted water for five minutes. Remove from water and rinse under cool tap water to stop the cooking process.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large shallot, chopped
1 Serrano pepper (or spicy pepper of your choice), sliced thin
1 bay leaf
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
2 teaspoons kosher salt
¼ cup sherry, Oloroso or Fino
Now, add the olive oil to a large sauté pan on medium heat cook the shallot, pepper, garlic and bay leaf for five minutes until translucent, stirring occasionally.
Add the cherry tomatoes and cook an additional five minutes until the tomato starts to break down.
Pour the sherry and cooked green beans in the pan and mix to incorporate the flavors. Turn the burner to low, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
Remove lid and crank the heat to high, until the pan juices bubble. Turn off the burner.
¼ cup basil leaves, rough chop
¼ cup toasted almonds, rough chop
Mound the drenched veggies on a platter; stacking it high. Sprinkle the basil and toasted almond over the top, and enjoy. Olé!
