Green Beans with Garlic Butter and Cashews

When you think of green beans for Thanksgiving dinner, you usually think of the classic Green Bean Casserole, am I right? That's fine and all, but I say there's nothing wrong with mixing things up a little every now and then, dontcha think? That's how new classics are born!! So when I decided to have a few friends over for a Fall dinner, I decided to do a new green bean recipe.
 My first thought was to do something a little bit lighter than a heavy casserole, since I was already planning to do a sweet potato gratin. Then I thought it might be fun to do a variation on the classic Almondine, which has slivered almonds. I thought, hmm... how about cashews? So I did some googling and I found a recipe for broccoli and cashews.. Ok, lets try it with green beans instead!
OMG it turned out great!! It was EXACTLY what I was hoping for and everyone loved it! It was easy as can be, too. So even if you're not looking for Thanksgiving side dishes, you should still add this one to your repertoire. This one's a keeper!


1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans
1/3 cup butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chopped salted cashews


 Remove stem ends from beans, and break or cut them into small pieces. Place them in a large pot with about 1 inch of water in the bottom. Bring to a boil, and cook for 7 minutes, or until tender. Drain and set aside. While the beans are cooking, melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper, and garlic. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Mix in the cashews, and then pour the sauce over the beans. Toss everything together. Pour onto a serving plate.  Serve immediately.


Tips:
If you want to get a head start, you can prep and par cook the beans the night before. After you cook the beans, plunge them into a big bowl of ice water. It will stop the cooking and it will set the bright green color. Then when it's time to serve, just heat them back up again (either in the microwave or a few seconds in boiling water), and then toss them with the cashew sauce. Easy!