Roasted Green Beans with Shallots, Red Pepper, and Garlic

 I made these for dinner tonight along with some grilled chicken and baked potatoes. They were so much better than basic steamed or boiled beans. If you haven't roasted green beans before, give it a try. They're delicious. And cheap. I got a pound of green beans for .60 cents. Add 1 red pepper for .50 cents, 4 cloves garlic for pennies, about 6 shallots for about $1.00, and a handful of toasted pine nuts. Delicious, cheap, and pretty. Can't beat that.

Here goes: Wash and snap off the ends of 1 pound of super fresh green beans. No wimpy beans here. Make sure they are crisp and moist. Then dry them off so they roast, rather than steam.

Slice up 1 red bell pepper.

Halve about 6 shallots. Keep them fairly thick so they don't burn. Throw in some whole or half garlic cloves.  I made some roasted garlic, so had the cut off garlic tops, peeled, and tossed those in.

Pour some Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the top. Sprinkle with Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Place in a pre-heated 425 degree oven for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, stir them up with a spatula.

Return to oven for another 10 minutes.

                                         Remove from the oven and zest 1 lemon over the top.

                                     Add a handful of toasted pine nuts (or toasted almonds)

                                                                    And dig on in.

Ingredients

1 lb fresh green beans

1 Red Bell Pepper

6 cloves garlic

6 shallots, halved

2 Tbls Olive Oil

Kosher salt 

Fresh cracked pepper

Method

1. Wash and snap off the ends of 1 pound of fresh green beans. 

2. Halve 6 (or so) shallots. 

3. Add 6 whole or halved cloves fresh garlic.

4. Pour 2 Tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the top. 

5. Sprinkle with 2 tsp Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.

6. Place in a pre-heated 425 degree oven for 10 minutes. 

7. After 10 minutes, stir them up with a spatula.

8. Return to oven for another 10 minutes.

9. Remove from the oven and zest 1 lemon over the top.

10. Add a handful of toasted pine nuts (or toasted almonds).

11. Toss and serve warm.

Grilled Vegetables with herb Balsamic vinaigrette

Fresh grilled vegetables with a balsamic herb dressing. Delicious! My inspiration for this dish came from The Food Network, Everyday Italian. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/grilled-vegetables-recipe/index.html. Now Giada must have been cooking for a huge crowd, as that amount of veg would feed a small infantry division. I was cooking for five adults and three toddlers. And I still had leftovers. Perhaps it was due to the Grilled Ribeyes, grilled corn, and smashed potatoes (http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/05/restaurant-style-smashed-potatoes/). Who can say?

Let's get grilling! Here's what we need:

1 Red pepper

1 Orange pepper

2 medium size zucchini

1 yellow crookneck squash

1 pound Cremini (Baby Bellas) mushrooms

1 bunch asparagus

Green onions

1 eggplant (Leave it out. Trust me.)

For the dressing:

1/4 cup (approximately) Extra Virgin olive oil

3 Tbls (approximately) balsamic vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 sprig fresh rosemary, minced

6 (or so) large fresh basil leaves, chopped

3 (or so) fresh thyme leaves, chopped

First things first. Mix up the dressing. Just whisk it all together. Then TASTE! Season it up to your liking. Needs more salt? Add some. More sweet? Add more Balsamic.. Heat? Throw in a pinch of red pepper flakes. Herbs? Add more. It's just food.

Now, we need to prep the veg. 

Cut the peppers in half and cut, or rip, the seeds and white stuff out.

Next, trim the asparagus ends off. If the asparagus is kind of thick, peel the ends with a vegetable peeler, like I did.

Wash the mushrooms off with a wet towel to get all the dirt off.

Cut the squash in half, then half again.

Leave out the eggplant. It was mushy and not delish.

Heat up the grill and the grill pan on medium/high heat.

Brush the veg with olive oil, and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.

Put the mushrooms on the grill pan. Put the peppers on the grill. skin side down. Cook for 5 minutes.

Then, put the asparagus, eggplant, and squash on the grill.

Turn the mushrooms over when they have dark brown grill marks. Turn the peppers over when they are black and blistered. Put the squash on the hottest part of the grill, skin side down. They only need about 3 minutes to char. That's what you're going for here. CHAR!

Flip all the veg over when charred on one side. 

Remove the peppers, cover with a bowl to steam the skins off. After about 5 minutes, peel the peppers, and slice into strips.

Remove all veg from the grill when crisp/tender, and place on a nice platter, drizzle with dressing, and toss.

Bon Appetit! 

Ingredients:

1 Red pepper

1 Orange pepper

2 medium size zucchini

1 yellow crookneck squash

1 pound Cremini (Baby Bellas) mushrooms

1 bunch asparagus

6 Green onions

Dressing:

1/4 cup (approximately) Extra Virgin olive oil

3 Tbls (approximately) balsamic vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 sprig fresh rosemary, minced

6 (or so) large fresh basil leaves, chopped

3 (or so) fresh thyme leaves, chopped

Method:

1. Cut the peppers in half and cut, or rip, the seeds and white stuff out.

2. Trim the asparagus ends off. If the asparagus is thick, peel the ends with a vegetable peeler.

3. Wash the mushrooms off with a wet towel to get all the dirt off.

4. Cut the squash in half, then half again.

5. Heat up the grill and the grill pan on medium/high heat.

6. Brush the veg with olive oil, and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.

7. 

Put the mushrooms on the grill pan. Put the peppers on the grill. skin side down. Cook for 5 minutes.

    Then, put the asparagus, eggplant, and squash on the grill.

8. 

Turn the mushrooms over when they have dark brown grill marks. Turn the peppers over when they are black and blistered. Put the squash on the hottest part of the grill, skin side down. They only need about 3 minutes to char. 

Flip all the veg over when charred on one side. 

9. Remove the peppers, cover with a bowl to steam the skins off. After about 5 minutes, peel the peppers, and slice into         strips.

10. Remove all veg from the grill when crisp/tender, and place on a nice platter, drizzle with dressing, and toss.