Green Bean Salad with Mustard and Tarragon

Our bean vines are producing vigorously. Fortunately, I love green bean salad. I steam the beans until tender then toss them in a simple vinaigrette. I cook a pound at a time because they last well in the fridge, ready for a quick meal.

The other day I tossed them in a mustard vinaigrette to which I added a snippet of tarragon. It's worth finding a sunny well-drained spot for this perennial because its slight anise-y flavor gives a subtle boost to mustard vinaigrettes like this one.

Green Bean Salad
1 lb green beans, trimmed
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp chopped tarragon
3/4 tsp salt
pepper
1-2 tbsp spring onion or chives of Egyptian walking onion

Steam beans until tender but still crunchy, 7-10 minutes. Plunge in an ice water bath to stop the cooking, then drain and pat them dry.

Whisk together the remaining ingredients. Add the beans and toss to coat. Chill until ready to serve.

Serves 4

Coconut Rice

I love our rice cooker in the summer. It doesn't heat up the kitchen, and I can load it up and then go putter in the garden while it cooks dinner. It turns itself to warm when the rice is cooked.

The other day I used it to cook basmati rice in coconut milk with a little curry powder. The rice turned a beautiful yellow color. I served it with curried tofu and corn on the cob for a yummy and colorful meal.

Fortunately, we had leftover rice. A couple of days later I used it in simple stir-fried rice. I sautéed onions, garlic and chopped peppers in our wok. I stirred in the cooked rice and some homegrown green beans cut in 1-inch lengths. Then I added a splash of hot water, put the lid on and let it steam — checking and stirring occasionally — until the rice was hot and the beans tender-crisp.

It was a simple one-bowl dinner. I love leftovers.

Here's the recipe for the coconut rice that was the base of the stir-fry. It's really good the first time around too.

Coconut Rice
2 cups long-grain white rice (I used organic texmati)
1 can coconut milk plus enough water to make 2 1/4 cups liquid
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp salt

Combine all the ingredients in the rice cooker and stir well. Cook until the rice cooker tells you it's done, about 20-30 minutes.

Serves 4

Black Rice Salad with Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette

We have a lovely little Meyer lemon tree that was covered with lemons this spring. They last well, so we're still enjoying the crop.

They have a more floral aroma than a regular lemon, which makes them well-suited to desserts and ice cream. But because we don't eat a lot of sweets, I experiment with using them in savory dishes. The other day I used them in a vinaigrette for this black rice salad that I served with chilled asparagus on the side. Their lightly floral yet tangy flavor really boosted the salad in a way plain lemon juice wouldn't.

I used black rice in the salad because I like to mix up the nutrients we get from our food. Brown rice, black rice and red rice all have different kinds of carotenoids and other vitamins. I think our bodies appreciate the diversity.

Plus, black rice always gets a reaction from its color alone. The cherry tomatoes and green beans really popped against it. I buy organic black rice from Lotus Foods at my local independent grocery store.

The walnuts added an earthy crunch and the Meyer lemon added a floral tone. A regular lemon could be substituted and the salad would still be good. (And it would probably be good with brown rice instead of black, but it wouldn't be as pretty!)

Black Rice Salad with Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette
1 cup black rice
1/2 cup walnuts
1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp slivered red onion
3/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups green beans cut in 1 inch pieces

Cook rice according to packet instructions until tender, about 35-40 minutes. Drain it well and let it cool.

Lightly toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat, watching closely. When they smell good, take them from the pan, let them cool a little, then chop coarsely.

Whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil. Season with salt to taste.

Put all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss gently. Season to taste.

Serves 6 as a main course. The leftovers are good the next day too.

Purple and Gold Beans

I planted some bush beans in early February, protected them with chicken wire, and crossed my fingers.

This week we ate our first harvest of purple, gold and green beans. Sadly, the purple ones turn green when they're cooked, so we end up with just yellow and green on our plates. But really, there is nothing better than freshly-picked beans.

I cooked them briefly in a little boiling water, and we ate them au naturel — they were so tender we didn't even need butter or salt and pepper. Yum!

Three Bean Stew

This is a fun winter stew using fresh green beans, dried Christmas limas (or other dried bean) and frozen edamame. We enjoyed the colorful combination as a meal in itself, and then as leftovers served over brown rice a couple of days later.

Three Bean Stew

2 1/2 oz green beans

1 1/4 cup frozen shelled edamame

1 tbsp olive oil

2/3 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

3" rosemary sprig

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 carrot, chopped

1/3 cup dried beans, cooked

1 1/2 cups vegetable stock

2 tbsp unsalted butter

Trim green beans and cut into 2-inch lengths. Cook until tender. Drain. Cool in ice water and drain again. Set aside.

Cook edamame according to package directions. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside.

Warm olive oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet. Add the onion, garlic, bay leaf, rosemary, salt and pepper. Cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add carrot and celery. Cook, stirring, until softened, another 3-5 minutes.

Add cooked beans and vegetable stock. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Add green beans and edamame. Cook a couple of minutes until heated through. Add the butter and stir gently until it is melted. Discard the bay leaf and rosemary.

Serve hot.

Green Beans with Lemon Mustard Vinaigrette

I love green beans. Lightly cooked and served on the side, they add a welcome green simplicity to any meal.

At Thanksgiving, however, nothing is plain, so I dressed them up with a simple mustardy vinaigrette. Mustard goes well with ham, I figured, so it was a good match.

I confess that I do not steam my green beans. I throw them in a pot of boiling water for 8 minutes, then drain them. Served like this, they are delicious. A pat of butter and a little salt and pepper gilds the lily.

Of course, if you have really young fresh beans, like the ones I hope to be harvesting this winter, steam them for a mere 3-5 minutes to keep their tender taste. The organic green beans I've been buying at the Hollywood Farmers Market are more mature and benefit from a good boil.

Green beans in vinaigrette make a nice room temperature side, and can also be chopped up and added to cooked rice or salads. Leftover lemon mustard dressing is also good on green salads or bean salads, or poured over any cooked vegetable.

On Thanksgiving, I strolled through the garden picking a lemon and some tarragon to garnish the beans. If you don't have fresh tarragon, use any herb you like  – dried is fine, just use 1/4 tsp to start and then add more to taste.

Green Beans with Lemon Mustard Vinaigrette
1 lb green beans, ends trimmed
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
2 tsp minced red onion
1 clove garlic, minced (opt)
1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
3/4 tsp salt
pepper

Cook beans. Either steam until tender, or cook in boiling water about 8 minutes until tender. Drain, refresh in cold water, and pat dry. Arrange on a platter.

Make the vinaigrette by whisking together the remaining ingredients.

Pour the vinaigrette over the beans, and serve.

Serves 4

Rice Salad with Eggs and Green Beans

It's been too hot to cook, so I've been relying on salads at dinner time.

This one, with eggs and rice and corn, was a truly complete meal. We ate almost all of it in one sitting, and I took the leftovers for lunch the next day. That is the sign of a good salad.

A note about the rice: Usually I make this salad with brown rice, but I had spent the early evening puttering in the garden so to get this salad on the table in a timely manner, I used white jasmati rice – an organic rice from Texas that my local independent grocery store carries. It has a great flavor, and I had dinner on the table in under 45 minutes.

Rice Salad with Eggs and Green Beans
1 red pepper
1/2 cup onion, sliced in rings
2 cups cooked rice
4 oz (large handful) green beans
1/2 cup corn (frozen is fine)
2 eggs
1 small avocado
butter lettuce
1 tbsp capers
6 olives, sliced

Dressing:
1  clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp yogurt
1/2 tsp dijon

Cut the red pepper in half. Remove the seeds and membranes. Place cut-side down in a small roasting pan. Add the onion rings. Sprinkle the onion with a little olive oil, then cook them under a broiler for 5-6 minutes until the pepper starts to blacken. Stir the onion a couple of times so it turns golden, not black. Put the pepper halves in a pot and let them steam gently. Cut the onion rings up and stir them into the rice. Put the rice on a large platter.

When the peppers are cool enough to touch, scrape off the skin (as much as you can) and cut them into thin strips.

Pierce the eggs with a pin and put them in a pan of boiling, salted water for 10 minutes. Drain and refresh in ice water. When cool enough to touch, peel off the shells and cut the eggs in quarters.

Cook the green beans in a little boiling water for 2 minutes, then add the corn and cook another 2 minutes. Drain and put in a bowl with the red pepper strips.

Stir together the washed and torn lettuce leaves with the peeled and diced avocado. Pile them on the rice.

Whisk together the dressing ingredients. Put about half into the bowl with the green beans and toss gently. Pile this on top of the salad.

Decorate the platter with the eggs, olives and capers.

Serve the extra dressing on the side.

Serves 3-4

Green Beans with Hazelnuts

Finley Farms at the Hollywood Farmers Market has had excellent green beans this fall. The Finley children enjoy them raw. We've eaten them cooked but plain - simmered for 9 minutes in boiling water - no butter or salt or pepper required.

Cooking is really easy when you start with good produce.

The other night, however, I decided to dress up the green beans with some hazelnuts I found in the freezer and some mint and a lemon from the garden.

It is still an easy side dish - it can even be made ahead and served at room temperature - so it would be good for Thanksgiving.

Green Beans with Hazelnuts
1/4 cup hazelnuts
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves
1 tbsp grated lemon peel
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt (or more to taste)
4 tbsp olive oil
3/4 lb green beans

Toast hazelnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat until they smell good and are golden when you break one open. Tip them onto a kitchen towel, and when they're cool enough to handle rub them with the towel to remove as many of the brown skins as possible. Chop coarsely and set aside. (This can be done hours or days ahead.)

Stir together the mint, lemon peel, lemon juice and salt. Whisk in the olive oil. Taste and add more salt if desired.

Cook the beans in boiling water until just cooked - 7-9 minutes.

Now you can choose whether to serve them right away as a warm vegetable side or later as a room-temperature salad.

I served them warm by tossing the beans with some of the dressing, putting them on a serving plate, and sprinkling the hazelnuts on top. I served the small amount of extra dressing on the side.

To serve them as a salad, when the beans are tender plunge them into ice water to cool, then drain and set aside. When ready to serve, toss with the dressing, sprinkle with the nuts and serve.

Serves 2-3

New Year's Eve Pasta

I recently found the most interesting pasta at my local independent grocery store.

It's organic artisan pasta made in Puglia, Italy, and while I shudder at the fuel dollars that were spent shipping the pasta halfway around the world, I feel good supporting organic farmers and artisan pasta makers in Italy.

It was the form of the pasta that caught my eye - it was called sagne torte, and looked like long twisted fettucine. I felt it would be an excellent match with a rich mushroom sauce on New Year's Eve.

And it was. It was thick and chewy and tasty, and it absorbed the cream sauce well. It even retained some of its twists after cooking. Larry found it a little too long - it turns out it was folded in half in the package, so each strand was about 2 feet long - but I felt that made it more entertaining.

The green beans were young tender beans from McGrath farms. I used brown cremini mushrooms, but the white kind would be okay too. Make sure to use organic whipping cream. One of our basil plants is still going, and the fresh basil made a great flavor pop, but the dish will still be good without it.

This is not a health food recipe. However, it is delicious, so save it for a special occasion and drink a glass of red wine with it to help your arteries.

Happy New Year!

Creamy Pasta with Mushrooms and Green Beans
1 tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 cup white wine
1 1/4 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup vegetable stock
8 oz green beans, trimmed and cut in two-inch pieces
12 oz fettucine
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1 egg
3 tbsp chopped fresh basil
shaved parmesan to taste

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and garlic and cook over medium heat until soft, 3-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring, another minute. Add the wine, cream and stock. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Add the green beans a couple of minutes into the cooking time.

Cook the fettucine according to package directions. If the sun-dried tomatoes are in oil, cut them in thin strips. If they're dry, pour hot water over them and let them soften a few minutes, then drain and cut in strips.

Turn the heat under the skillet to low. Lightly beat the egg in a small bowl. Whisk in a little of the hot creamy liquid, stirring constantly. This warms the egg so it doesn't curdle when you add it to the skillet. Pour the egg mixture slowly into the skillet, stirring constantly for about a minute. Keep the heat low so it doesn't boil. Add the basil and sun-dried tomatoes. Stir gently until heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Stir sauce over the warm pasta. Garnish with shavings of parmesan.

Serves 3-4

Green Beans with Curry Yogurt

We've been enjoying the green beans at the farmers market this summer. We've eaten green bean salad, plain steamed beans with butter and salt and pepper, and stewed green beans.

Last week I made these spicy green beans to tantalize our over-heated tastebuds.

It worked. Larry says these are the best green beans ever.

The beans are cooked as usual until tender-crisp, drained and set aside until just before it's time for dinner.

Then they are tossed with a sauce of spices and yogurt. I got the idea from Paul Gayler in his book Passion for Vegetables.

The roasted sesame oil, cumin, mustard and tumeric make the palate perk up and take notice. I'll be making it often in the winter months too -- as long as there are green beans at the farmers market.

There is a labor of love involved, unfortunately. It's necessary to take the seeds out of the green cardamom pods they come in. Use a small sharp knife to cut down the center of the pod and scrape out the seeds. It takes a dozen or so pods to fill a half teaspoon with seeds. But it so worth it for the flavor boost. I suppose you could substitute powdered cardamom, but it would not be the same.

Green Beans with Curry Yogurt
1 lb green beans
1 tbsp roasted sesame oil
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cardamom seeds
1/4 tsp tumeric powder
5 tbsp plain yogurt
1 small clove garlic, crushed.

Cook beans in boiling water until tender but slightly crisp, about 8 minutes depending on the size and age of the beans. (You can steam them if you prefer.) Drain and set aside.

Warm the oils in a large skillet. Add the cumin, mustard, cardamom and tumeric and stir a few seconds. Stir in the yogurt and garlic. Simmer another couple of minutes, then add the beans. Toss until they are warmed through, and serve.

Serves 2-4

Simple Summer Vegetables

Larry decided to barbecue last week. He cooked potatoes in the coals, and grilled a steak for him and a portobello mushroom for me. (See his mushroom technique here.)

I was in charge of the vegetables, and it was a wonderfully simple job on this summer day.

I picked a tomato from the garden, sliced it thinly, drizzled it with olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and scattered fresh basil on top.

I lightly steamed some green beans and tossed them with a vinaigrette of 1 tbsp olive oil to 2 tsp red wine vinegar. I sprinkled a few chopped scallions on top.

And I grilled some zucchini on my grill pan. I could have waited and shared Larry's barbecue, but I was putting all these together a couple of hours before dinner, and it was easier to use the stove.

I sliced the zucchini in half across, and then in lengthwise in slices. I brushed them with olive oil and grilled them 4-5 minutes until tender, then flipped them for a couple more minutes. Then I sprinkled them with salt and pepper and squeezed on a little lemon juice.

I combined them all into a salad platter with the zest and texture to complement the main course.

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

This was our Thanksgiving day menu:

Halftime appetizer:
Pumpkin empanadas with cilantro-mint dipping sauce

Dinner:
Honey-baked ham (for Larry and Trace)
Homemade bread with honey butter
Green bean and mushroom casserole
Baked kabocha squash
Spicy brown rice with mushrooms and chipotles
Kohlrabi greens and roots with garlic
Beets with mint
Salad with persimmons and pomegranate seeds

Dessert:
Lemon pudding cake with cranberry syrup

Eat organic

I'm fortunate to be able to eat a wide variety of organic produce. It helps to live in southern California and shop at the Hollywood Farmers' Market.

I know that not everyone is as lucky as me, so here is the annual list of foods that are safe to eat even if they are not organic.

Every year the Environmental Working Group tests US-grown food for pesticide residue. Although we don't know what long-term use of pesticides does to the human nervous and endocrine system, there are standards as to what is too much to consume.

The first list, The Dirty Dozen, refers to foods that should never be eaten unless they are organic, because the pesticide residue is too high in the conventionally-grown kinds.

The second list is of foods which have a minimal level of pesticide residue when conventionally grown.

Notice that greens must be organically-grown. Don't let that stop you from eating greens. Instead ask your produce manager or favorite organic farmer to stock organic greens. They're available, they're delicious and they're healthy. And even at $2.50 a bunch, they're a better deal than a multi-vitamin.


Dirty Dozen: eat only if organic
apples
bell peppers
blueberries
celery
cucumbers
grapes
green beans
kale / greens
lettuce
nectarines - imported
peaches
potatoes
spinach
strawberries

Low Pesticide Residue: These 15 foods are lowest in pesticide residue, and are considered safe to eat even if not organic.
asparagus
avocado
cabbage
cantaloupe
corn (probably gmo if not organic)
eggplant
grapefruit
kiwi
mangoes
mushrooms
onions
peas
pineapples
sweet potatoes
watermelon

Stewed Summer Beans

We came back from our trip to find our green beans had been prolific. They were not tender young beans, but long tough ones.

So I stewed them in tomatoes and basil to bring out their sweetness, served them with cheese-y toast, and we had a feast.

Old recipes for tough green beans usually contain added sugar, but if you caramelize the onion a little, and add enough dried basil (which I find is sweeter than fresh), the dish is sweet enough.

(I write this as if it was a solid recipe. It's not. It's something for you to riff off, depending on how many beans you have, how tough your beans are, etc. If your tomatoes are producing, use fresh instead of canned. It's hard to mess this recipe up.)

Stewed Summer Beans
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb green beans
14-oz can diced tomatoes
1 tsp dried basil
salt and pepper to taste

Warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until lightly browned, stirring occasionally.

Trim the green beans, and cut into 1 inch lengths. Add to the pan, along with the can of tomatoes. Add a splash of water if necessary. Stir in the basil. Cover and cook until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally, and adding more water if necessary to prevent scorching. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 2-3.