From Scratch Green Bean Casserole
This green bean casserole is a modern take on the traditional holiday favorite. Instead of canned soup and green beans, this recipe uses homemade cream of mushroom soup and fresh green beans. It’s topped with a crunchy mix of fried onions and toasted breadcrumbs.
This post has been a long time coming. I first made this green bean casserole three years ago while visiting family for Thanksgiving. We won’t be seeing any family at Thanksgiving this year, but we couldn’t let the season pass without making this green bean casserole again. We had the opportunity to make it for a Thanksgiving potluck at our friends’ house last weekend. I was so excited when one of our friends asked if this was the same one we made for our Friendsgiving party last year. To have a memorable dish always means a lot to me, especially when it’s something as unmemorable as a casserole.
What makes this dish so memorable? It’s the fact that, instead of canned cream of mushroom soup, this recipe uses a homemade cream of mushroom soup as the base. The soup is creamy and rich, easily delicious enough to enjoy on its own. The fresh, crisp-tender green beans are a far cry from the one note kind I grew up eating from a can. And if you’re a fan of crunchy toppings, you’ll love this one made with fried onions and toasted breadcrumbs.
- YIELD: 10-12 servings
For the topping:
4 slices white sandwich bread, each slice torn into quarters
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
¼ teaspoon table salt
⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cups canned fried onions (about 6 ounces)
For the beans:
2 pounds green beans, ends trimmed, halved
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 pound white button mushrooms, stems trimmed, wiped clean, and broken into ½-inch pieces
3 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
1½ cups heavy cream
- 1
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the bread, butter, salt and pepper until coarse crumbs form, about ten 1-second pulses. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with the onions; set aside.
- 2
Heat oven to 425º. Prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice water and place it near the stove.
In a large Dutch oven, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of salt and beans. Cook for about 6 minutes, until the beans are bright green and crisp-tender. Drain the beans and dunk them into the water to stop cooking. Remove from the ice bath and place onto a paper towel lined baking sheet to drain completely.
- 3
Add butter to Dutch oven and melt over medium high heat. Once foaming has subsided, add mushrooms, garlic, ¾ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon of pepper. Cook for about 6 minutes, or until the mushrooms have released their moisture and the liquid has evaporated.
Stirring constantly, sprinkle in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Stir in broth and, still stirring constantly, bring to a simmer. Add cream, reduce heat to medium, and continue simmering about 12 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and reduced to 3½ cups. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- 4
Place green beans back into the Dutch oven and stir to evenly coat them with sauce. Pour into a 3 quart baking dish. Evenly spread topping over the beans and bake for about 15 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Serve immediately.
Just saw Annie’s version- they both look great!
After seeing several homemade versions for this now, I totally have to try it. Looks great, Courtney! Also, diddn’t get a chance to mention it earlier – but, I love the site revamp. Looks fabulous!
This looks delicious! You had me at the crumb topping in the first photo 😀
I could make a meal out of this alone!
Just want to pass along that I made this for Thanksgiving and it was such a hit! My mom was over when I was preparing it and she helped me so it was even more special. My family just loves those canned onions (lol) so I couldn’t imagine not incorporating them somehow so I thought this recipe was a real winner! It was the best of both worlds! Thank you for this! I will never look back!