Green beans with Craisins, Walnuts and Feta Cheese - 52 Side Dish Recipes

HAPPY THANKSGIVING (Late or eary for next year)!

Here's the first of my dishes I served at my Thanksgiving table.  Crispy crunchy green beans, Nutty Walnuts, Sweet juicy Craisins and the Earthy unique tastes of Feta Cheese all mixed and mingled with an easy to make Mustard Vinaigrette Dressing.

The whole dish, start to finish only takes 10 or 15 minutes to make.  Delicious, Quick and EASY PEASY!  A great combination for a busy Holiday Meal!

And the payoff is a delicious new twist on a holiday favorite.  Colorful (Christmas colors red and green even), Delicious combinations of flavors and a blending of textures Crunchy, squishy, and snappy (walnuts, Craisins and the snappy blanched Green beans).

Fits into any delightful Holiday Event!

Keep scrolling down for this easy to follow recipe...

OK... Here's what I did...

Green beans with Craisins, Walnuts and Feta Cheese

Ingredients

• 2 Pounds Green beans, trimmed
• 3 TBS Olive Oil
• 1 TBS Red Wine Vinegar
• 3 TBS Dijon Mustard
• Large pinch of Sea Salt
• Several grinds of a Fresh Pepper Grinder
• 1 Cup Walnuts
• 1/2 Cup Craisins
• 1 Small Shallot, sliced thin, rings separated
• 4 ounces Feta Cheese Crumbles

Cooking Directions

1. Blanch the green beans. In a large pot of rapidly boiling water, add 1/4 cup table salt to the pot. Add the beans and allow to cook for no more than 3 minutes. Beans will be tender but still crisp. Remove from the heat and drain beans into a colander. Run cold water over the beans to stop the cooking process and lock in the bright coloring.
2. Once the beans are cooked and blanched, allow to air dry. Meanwhile, whisk together the Mustard Vinaigrette. Whisk together the Olive Oil, Vinegar and Mustard. Stir in the salt and pepper to taste. If Vinaigrette is too tart for your taste, add a bit of Honey or sugar to sweeten the vinaigrette... to taste.
3. Add the cooled beans to a serving dish. Mix in the shallot slices, 1/2 of the craisins, 1/2 of the walnuts and 1/2 of the Feta Cheese and mix.
4. Drizzle all but an ounce or two of the vinaigrette over the bean mixture.
5. Spread remaining Walnuts, Craisins and feta over the top of the beans and drizzle remaining vinaigrette.
6. Serve room temperature (can warm for a bit in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes if you want to serve warm) and ENJOY!

I served this dish for my Thanksgiving Day meal alongside Ham, Turkey, Sweet Potatoes, Garlic Mashers and Caramelized Brussels Sprouts... Yum!

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So,  I am pleased to list this as one of my Growing list of  "52 Ways to Cook Side Dish Recipes"!!!

Sure the meat gets all the glory but real cooks know it's the spread... the specialty Side Dishes that makes a meal rise or fall. Here's a few of my favorite recipes that will help to create that illusive COMPLETE MENU!

LOTS of Potato Sides, Vegetable Sides, Specialty Salads, Bread and MORE!

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