1 lb green beans

8 cloves garlic

1 container chicken stock

1/3 cup water

4-5 button mushrooms

2 Tbsp corn starch

3 Tbsp cream

salt and pepper to taste

French fried onion – optional

 

Clean and cut green beans in to 2 inch pieces. Pour stock and water into pot with 5 cloves of garlic and green beans. Simmer until tender. Turn oven on to 350

Roughly chop 3 garlic cloves and mushrooms. Place in a pan with medium heat. Remove some liquid from green bean pot into pan, about 2 ladles worth. The liquid will reduce to about half and the garlic and mushrooms will become tender.

Remove extra liquid from the pot to prevent a soupy casserole… to where about half or a little more green beans are submerged. Return liquid with mushrooms and garlic back into the pot.

Ladle out 1/4 cup of liquid into a small bowl or measuring up to make the corn starch slurry. Add the corn starch and whisk vigorously so no lumps remain. Add slurry and cream to the green bean mushrooms. Coat beans and mushrooms until evenly distributed. Add salt and pepper to taste. The mix will be watery but it’s easier to season before it thickens

Place in a dish put in the oven until it just simmers… about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and if needed, turn green beans and mushrooms. Add fried onions and place in oven to toast onions. Be sure not to let it stay in the oven too long. Excessive heat will break down the starches and the nice thick coating will turn watery.

NOTE: if pressed for time and you don’t want to use the oven. You could heat everything in the pot rather than a dish in the oven. Bring the pot to a simmer and turn beans to prevent it from sticking to the pot. Once it’s thickened, serve and enjoy!

 

 

For me, whip cream is synonymous with summer. The ultimate summer time treat. I frequently use it to mask not quite ripe fruit. Especially strawberries! This is a simple 3 ingredient whipped cream which tastes better than anything I’ve ever bought. I like to have my whipped cream taste nothing like cream. I don’t enjoy the taste of dairy so I mask it with vanilla. I also don’t care much for sugary sweets so this is a fluffy, mild whipped cream that hasn’t got a bunch of “bad” things in it. The best part is that the vanilla makes the whipped cream taste like it’s sweeter without needing more sugar.

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 Tbsp powdered sugar

1 Tbsp vanilla extract (give or take to your taste)

It’s best to have your bowl refrigerated first. Having really cold cream helps aerate the cream and you have fluffier whipped cream. A cold bowl keeps the cream cold. I frequently freeze my bowl… when I have room in my freezer.

sift the powdered sugar into the bowl. Pour in cream and vanilla. Use the whisk attachment with your stand mixer. start at a low speed and slowly move up. If you do it too quickly it’ll spray cream and possibly powdered sugar everywhere. You’ll see the cream begin to look thicker and rise. It is important to watch it to make sure it’s not overbeaten. If it is, the mild solids and water will separate and you will end up with butter… very yummy butter.  You want to beat until you get soft peaks. I frequently stop the mixer when I see streaks in the cream from the whisk.

I check until I get soft peaks. Remember to scrape the bowl when you check so the cream is evenly whipped. Scoop out your desired amount, and the rest can be stored in the fridge for a few days. It’ll start to lose some whip so I do a quick hand whisking and bring it back up then it’s good as new! Enjoy!