Before I share the recipe, I wanted to share my take on our transition away from meat. I think most people in America are raised that meals must be centered around meat, and if you don't have meat...well then you don't really have a meal. There have been several times in my life where I've switched to a vegetarian diet...but then over time I would go back to meat and then do the same thing...try to create my meals around meat. Over the past few years I finally made a mental shift in my mind...away from planning meals around meat, away from planning all of our meals around 'cravings' and away from what I'm primarily in the 'mood' for and more towards creating meals based on fresh ingredients I have on hand and pulling foods together that meet nutritional categories (e.g. if I eat a carb well then I need to counter it with protein).
We finally started accepting the change that a meal does not have to contain meat...I can create a meal that includes a protein and carb and realized that both can be plant-based...meaning many of our vegetables or nuts include protein and many vegetables and fruit provide carbs...and a healthy carb at that. It took a while for my husband to accept this...but once I started making meals that were just as flavorful, if not more, than those that had meat and that provided more 'bang for the buck' in terms of nutrition, and he started losing some weight and feeling better...he embraced the change as well. Now, it's no big deal, and in a lot of cases it's easier to pull healthy meals together that don't include meat...and we don't really miss it either. As for our kids, I've learned that the more you expose them to different food the more they will embrace and eat different food. I know some parents think all their kids will eat are chicken nuggets, mac/n/cheese or plain pasta with butter...well if that's all you give them and that's all you eat then yes, that's all they will eat. I promise you...if you eat diverse and healthy meals and your kids see you eat this way on a regular basis, they will too!
Ok, back to the delicious green bean salad recipe. This is a very simple, easy, healthy and tasty dish to make. If you aren't use to eating nuts or don't like them too much...please be brave and try to leave them in the recipe below, don't let it scare you off...embrace the difference and the small bit of protein, taste and additional nutritional value it will add to your dish.
SAVORY GREEN BEAN TOSS
- Fresh Green Beans (I don't have an exact measurement, I usually grab 2-4 handfuls of green beans) --- if you've never made fresh beans, snap off the stem end and snap them in half
- 2 tbsp of Walnuts, chopped into small pieces
- 2 tbsp of Shallots, minced (if you don't have shallots which are the smaller pink type onion/garlic in the grocery store, you can use a red onion or other onion)
- Fresh herbs - parsley, thyme (optional)
- Dressing: 4 tsp of olive oil or walnut or grapeseed oil, 2 tsp of red vinegar, 2 tsp of dijon mustard, salt, pepper and garlic salt or tiny bit of minced garlic
Steam the green beans around 6 minutes or until tender (steaming green beans is THE KEY to cooking green beans, don't boil them like I've done before which resulted in tough beans and long cooking time). While the beans are steaming, warm a skillet and place the chopped walnuts in, stir around to toast for a few minutes then add a small dash of the oil to wet the surface, add the shallots and stir around for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the herbs. Whisk the dressing ingredients together. Mix the beans in with the walnut/shallot/herb mixture then pour the dressing on top and mix well. Viola, you are ready to go and eat a wonderful dish!
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