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Fully cooked green bean casserole in a white baking dish with a blue napkin underneath and a spoon for serving.
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5 from 5 votes

Green Bean Casserole

If you’re looking for a side dish that brings all the comfort of traditional green bean casserole—but without the heavy cream and boxed soup—this is your winner, my Healthier Green Bean Casserole.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time50 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Author: Lexi

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter use oil for dairy-free
  • 1 1/2 pounds green beans trimmed and cut into pieces
  • 2 cups mushrooms sliced thin
  • 1 small onion sliced thin
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 teaspoon coconut aminos
  • 1/2 cup cashew cream
  • 1 cup vegetable broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt more to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper more to taste
  • Optional: 4 strips bacon cooked crispy and broken into pieces

Crispy Onions:

  • 1 medium onion sliced into thin rings
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons arrowroot flour
  • Avocado oil for frying

Instructions

  • Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x9 inch baking dish with butter or oil and set aside.

Make The Crispy Onions:

  • Slice the onion into thin rings.
  • In a small skillet, heat avocado oil until hot.
  • While waiting for the oil to heat up, whisk the egg and arrowroot together in a medium mixing bowl.
  • Working in batches, dip the onion into the egg/arrowroot mixture and then place into the hot oil. Cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until a dark brown.
  • Set aside on a plate lined with paper towels.

Blanch The Green Beans:

  • Bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in an 8-quart saucepan.
  • Add the green beans and blanch for 5 minutes.
  • Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.
  • Drain and set aside. See notes for recipe steps if you would rather roast the green beans.
  • Melt the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet set over medium-high heat.
  • Add the mushrooms, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to give up some of their liquid, approximately 4 to 5 minutes.
  • Add the onion, garlic, and coconut aminos and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Add the cashew cream and mix well.
  • Add the broth and simmer for 1 minute.
  • Decrease the heat to medium-low and add salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.
  • Cook over low heat until the mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, approximately 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Season green beans with salt and pepper. Add green beans to skillet with the sauce and mix until the green beans are well covered. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
  • Pour the green beans and sauce into the 9 x 9 baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes.
  • While baking, make the bacon if using.
  • Remove from the oven and top with crispy onions and optional bacon, if adding.
  • Bake for an addition 15-20 minutes, or until green beans are tender and bubbly.
  • Serve warm!

Notes

  1. See post: How to Make Cashew Cream!
  2. Roasting Instead of Blanching. You can roast the green beans, instead of blanch them if you like. Just toss with some oil and roast at 375ºF for 20-30 minutes. If you do roast the green beans, do not salt them!
  3. Blanch the beans. Blanching the green beans gives them that perfect crisp-tender texture. After you boil them, make sure you plunge them into a cold water bath right away to stop the cooking process, otherwise they could become mushy.
  4. Dry the green beans. After you wash the gree beans, be sure to drain and dry them to remove any excess moisture. If they’re too wet, the casserole can become watery.
  5. Wait to add the crispy onions. You want the onions to be crispy, not burnt! Make sure you bake the casserole without the onions at first, then add them when it’s closer to being done.
  6. You can roast the green beans, instead of blanch them if you like. Just toss with some oil, salt, and pepper and roast at 375ºF for 20-30 minutes. If you do roast and season the green beans, be careful not to add too much salt later on.

Nutrition

Serving: 4g | Calories: 153kcal | Carbohydrates: 17.2g | Protein: 7.3g | Fat: 7.7g | Saturated Fat: 4.1g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 497mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 4.4g