Roasted Green Beans with Onions and Walnuts

There's a lot of good cooking on TV the week before Thanksgiving, and I found some on PBS. This weekend, Christopher Kimball and Cooks Country offered this take on green beans, roasted rather than boiled with a balsamic vinegar honey coating and tossed with crunchy, toasted walnuts. I happily discovered the recipe on a favorite foodie Web site, SimplyRecipes.com.

Roasted Green Beans with Onions and Walnuts

Ingredients

* 1 lb green beans, stem ends snapped off
* 1/2 medium yellow or red onion, cut into 1/2 inch thick wedges
* 1 Tbsp olive oil
* Salt and pepper
* 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
* 1 teaspoon honey
* 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
* 2 medium thin-sliced garlic cloves
* 1/3 cup toasted chopped walnuts

Place rack in middle position, preheat oven to 450°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil or Silpat. Spread the beans and onions on the baking sheet. Drizzle the beans with olive oil and use your hands to coat the beans evenly. Sprinkle the beans with 1/2 teaspoon of salt, toss to coat, and distribute in an even layer. Roast for 10 minutes.

While roasting the beans, combine the balsamic vinegar, honey, thyme, and garlic slices in a small bowl.

After the beans and onions have roasted for 10 minutes, remove from oven. Drizzle the vinegar honey mixture over the beans and onions; use tongs to coat evenly. Put back in the oven and continue to roast until onions and beans are dark golden brown in spots and beans have started to shrivel, about 12-15 minutes longer.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to serving dish, sprinkle with toasted chopped walnuts, and serve.

Serves 4.

Photo credit: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/roasted_green_beans_with_onions_and_walnuts/

Mashed Potato Casserole

This recipe comes from "Cook's Country by America's Test Kitchen," episode 102, "Sunday Dinner." PBS has a channel, "Create," which is a blessing for us in geographically cable-free zones. It hosts cooking, travel, and build-it shows so my detox from the Food Network, The Travel Channel, and HGTV is buffered (well, maybe a little). "Cooks Country" is a BEAUTIFUL show, set in a gorgeous farmhouse in Vermont, with Christopher Kimball hosting. Each week they take a classic recipe and test and test to come up with the very best version of the dish. Katie and I were watching one day last year as they concocted their best rendition of Mashed Potato Casserole. We couldn't wait to try it, and when we did, we agreed. It is worthy of a primary place on your Thanksgiving (and every holiday!) table.

Mashed Potato Casserole from Cooks Country

SERVES 12

Ingredients

* 4 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1-inch chunks
* 12 tablespoons butter (1 1/2 sticks)
* 1/2 cup half-and-half
* 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
* 2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
* 1 garlic clove, minced
* 4 eggs
* 1/4 cup chopped chives

Directions

Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a bare simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Potatoes are done when a fork or paring knife can be inserted into a large chunk without much resistance.

Place butter, half-and-half, chicken broth, salt, mustard and garlic into a small saucepan. Heat until butter melts, about 5 minutes.

Drain potatoes well. Put potatoes in work bowl of stand mixer. Using paddle attachment, slowly add butter mixture with mixer on low. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Stir in chives by hand. Pour into a buttered casserole dish. Scrape top with tines of a fork to allow browning and texture. Place in upper middle 1/3 of a preheated 375°F oven for 35 minutes until golden-brown.

Photo credit: http://www.cooksillustrated.com/images/document%5Crecipe%5C4704_SFS_DJ08_MashedPotatoCasserole_1_article.jpg