Green Bean Casserole

I can honestly say I'm not a huge Green Bean Casserole fan. But my father-in-law really enjoys it. So for the first Thanksgiving at my house, I decided to give it a go. This recipe is based on Campbell's Green Bean Casserole recipe, but I slightly altered it because I felt like the recipe in its original format was too "soupy".

Green Bean Casserole



Ingredients
2 cans (10 3/4oz each) condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup, undiluted
1 cup light cream
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
8 cups cooked green beans
2 2/3 cup French Fried Onions

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.

In small saucepan (2 quart) melt butter, then add flour. Mix until thick, then add the light cream. Using a wire whisk, stir constantly until all is completely blended together. Heat on medium about 2-3 minutes until the mixture is slightly thickened. Add 1 can of cream of mushroom soup, mix well until combined and no chunky bits of soup remain, then add the 2nd can and do the same. Continue heating on medium heat another 2-4 minutes until mixture thickens. Remove from heat.

In 3 quart casserole dish, combine the sauce with green beans and 1 1/3 cup of the fried onions. Bake at 350F for 25 minutes or until hot. Stir mixture. Top with remaining fried onions and bake 5 minutes more.

Notes & Variations:
1. You may use milk or half & half instead of the light cream.
2. Replace 1 1/3 cup of French Fried Onions with sliced shallots instead. Gently fry the shallots in butter before adding flour to mixture. Follow the remaining steps the same, EXCEPT do not add 1 1/3 cups of fried onions to sauce mixture in casserole dish.
3. If you have the time, use fresh green beans instead of frozen or canned. Steam them until they still have a little bit of a crunch in them, but aren't totally soft.
4. Try adding a 1/2 cup of fresh sweet red bell pepper and/or quartered grape tomatoes to green bean mixture before baking.
5. For cheese lovers, had a half cup of shredded cheddar, Monterey Jack or cubed Velveeta to green bean mixture before baking. Right before adding the remaining fried onions for topping, add sprinkle anothher 1/2 cup of the cheese on top. Follow by remaining fried onion and bake 5 minutes. .