Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Have you started thinking about your menu yet? Mine is just about set. For the past few years, I’ve hosted Thanksgiving at my house for about 12-14 family members on my mom’s side. They fly from all over the United States. It’s the one time of year that we get to see all the family together. One of my cousins has a gluten allergy, so I’m always tasked with making a gluten-free menu. Most of my side dishes are naturally gluten-free. However, my cousin was never able to eat our canned green bean casserole (nothing wrong with that – I love the canned version, too)! Because of that, I decided to create a gluten-free green bean casserole recipe for her to enjoy. 

After extensive testing, I created a homemade, gluten-free green bean casserole that rivals the canned version. It’s so good that you’ll never question where the crunchy fried onions are. You see, I subbed out the tasty fried onions (loaded with gluten) for crispy pan-fried shallots. Just a little butter and fresh shallots give you some great flavors. Freshly chopped white mushrooms are added to the fresh haricots verts (thin French green beans). These thin green beans steam together with the mushrooms. Once the green beans are cooked to your liking, that’s when you take the green beans off the stove top and stir in the heavy cream/cornstarch mixture. You will notice they instantly thicken. Within 20 minutes, you have a creamy-decadent, homemade-from-scratch, gluten-free green bean casserole. The only thing else you’ll need to complete your Thanksgiving dinner is a pumpkin pie! 

If you’re not familiar with haricots verts, they are typically in a smaller bag packaged in the produce section at Publix and our local Walmart. I’ve bought them on occasion from Costco but have never found them at Sam’s Club. Every now and then, you can also find them at Earth Fare. You can use traditional green beans, but I prefer the skinnier green bean versus the thicker green bean. I keep the haricots verts whole, but you can cut in half if you prefer. If you love green bean casserole, I hope you’ll give this recipe for Gluten-Free Green Bean Casserole a try. 

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 4 shallots thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 lb. Haricot Vert
• 1/2 cup white mushrooms, diced
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• black pepper to taste
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon corn starch

Directions:

1. In a sauté pan, add 2 tablespoons butter and heat on high. Then add in the shallots. Reduce to medium heat with lid on and cook for 10 minutes, mixing often so that the shallots don’t burn. Halfway through cooking, add the water and mix well. Cook until golden brown and mostly crispy. Remove the crispy shallots from the pan and set to the side.
2. Place the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in the sauté pan, melt, and add the haricot vert and diced mushrooms in the pan with 1/2 cup water. Season with salt and pepper. Cook on high for 8 minutes until tender and most of the liquid has evaporated.  In a measuring cup (or bowl), mix together the heavy cream and corn starch.
3. Pour the heavy cream/corn starch mixture into the pan. Turn the heat off and stir. Cover and let sit for 2 additional minutes.
4. Place the green bean casserole in a serving dish, and top with crispy shallots. Enjoy.

Notes: If the sauce seems too thick, feel free to add additional water to thin it out. *Do not cook the heavy cream – it will curdle. You must remove the pan from the stove top and mix to avoid curdling.