Photo credit: Sara, Dinner at the Zoo
I have a confession to make. Unlike Calamity (Callie) Barnstable in my Marketville mystery series, I’m a dreadful cook. But Callie, bless her cold case solving heart, finds great solace in cooking. In my latest book, Before There Were Skeletons, Green Beans Almondine play a small, but surprisingly significant, part to the story line.
The French word amandine, often Anglicised as almondine in American cookbooks, is a culinary term meaning a garnish of almonds. This recipe is both nutritious and easy. In fact, even a dreadful cook like me could make it!
Five-Step Green Beans Almondine
Ingredients:
1-1/2 lb fresh green beans, stems trimmed
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp minced shallot or garlic (whatever you prefer or have on hand)
Salt and freshly ground pepper (to taste, but a pinch of each is plenty)
Juice from 1 lemon
Place trimmed green beans in salted, boiling water and blanch until bright green and tender-crisp about 3-4 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water.
Toast almonds in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring, until golden. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
Add butter and olive oil to the skillet, then add garlic or shallot and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring, until garlic or shallot is softened and fragrant. Add lemon juice and continue cooking until slightly thickened.
Add the green beans back into the skillet. Continue cooking until beans are heated through.
Place in a serving dish and top with toasted almonds.
Click here for a PDF of the recipe.