Recipe: Skinny Country Green Beans

Green beans are the perfect side dish to many an entree, but the problem is that many green bean [...]

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(Photo: Skinny Mom / PopCulture.com)

Green beans are the perfect side dish to many an entree, but the problem is that many green bean recipes are laden with fat and extra calories. Let's not forget that we're dealing with green beans here — they're supposed to be nutritious! Our Skinny Country Green Beans recipe brings that flavor you remember from your grandma's recipe and combines it with the proper nutrition hers was lacking.

Pro tip: Steps 3 and 4 call for blanching the green beans. Basically, blanching requires you to boil the vegetable for a very short amount of time and then quickly stop the cooking with the ice bath, resulting in keeping both the bright color and the nutrients. Oftentimes, blanching is used as a method to speed cooking time later. For example, we will blanch the beans, then sauté them with other ingredients, which serves the simple purpose of reheating them and melding the flavors of the other ingredients.

County Green Beans

Unsure how to slice that yellow onion? No problem:

Recipe: Skinny Country Green Beans

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 8-10 minutes
Yield: 5 servings
Serving size: 1 cup

Ingredients

  • 2 slices center-cut low-sodium bacon, baked and crumbled
  • 1 pound fresh green beans, ends trimmed and cut in half
  • 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • black pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, and place a cooling rack on top of the foil.
  2. Lay the bacon strips on the rack, and bake until desired crispness, 10-15 minutes.
  3. Prepare an ice bath by filling a large mixing bowl with ice cubes and water. Set aside.
  4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. When the water comes to a boil, carefully drop the green beans into the water and boil for about 2-3 minutes. You want the beans to have a slight crunch and still be bright green.
  5. If working in batches, remove the beans with a slotted spoon and transfer directly into the prepared ice bath. If not, simply drain the hot water and quickly transfer the beans to the ice bath.
  6. Drain the green beans from the ice bath once they are cooled, and set aside in a colander to dry.
  7. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 teaspoon of the oil, and the onions. Cook until the onions begin to become translucent, 4-6 minutes.
  8. Add the minced garlic and drained green beans, and cook for 2-3 minutes, moving the beans around frequently.
  9. In the last minute of cooking, add the vinegar, salt, black pepper, and bacon crumbles. Toss gently to combine.

Nutrition Information
Per Serving: (1 cup)
Calories: 78
Calories from fat: 31
Fat: 4g
Saturated Fat: 1g
Cholesterol: 5mg
Sodium: 311mg
Carbohydrates: 11g
Fiber: 5g
Sugar 6g
Protein: 5g
SmartPoints: 3

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