Ingredients

• 4 cups fresh green beans
• 4 strips of bacon (because, heck..)
• 1 onion--diced
• 1 cup button mushrooms--diced
• 6 Tbsp. butter (I didn't say it was healthier, just less processed 😉
• 6 Tbsp. flour
• 1.5-2 cups milk
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• salt and pepper
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 cup crispy fried onions (I just couldn't leave them out...)

Instructions

1. Wash, trim, and cut green beans into 1-2 inch pieces. Cook in salted, boiling water for 4-5 minutes. Transfer beans into an ice bath so they stop cooking. You want the beans to remain a bit crunchy; if we're using fresh green beans, lets not allow them to taste like canned...mmmkay?
2. Heat a large sauce pan or dutch oven to medium heat. Slice bacon into little bits (I like to freeze my bacon because it makes it easier to cut.) and cook it until crispy. Remove bacon bits from pan and drain them on paper towels.
3. Add mushrooms and onions to the bacon pan (Don't worry about draining the fat flavor. It's only the holidays once a year.). Cook the veggies until soft and slightly browned, about 10 minutes.
4. Add the butter to the onions and mushrooms and melt. Stir in flour and cook for a couple of minutes.
5. Slowly add the milk to the pan and cook until it bubbles and is thickened. If it seems too thick, add more milk. Add Soy sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Add green beans and reserved bacon and mix until beans are evenly coated. Check seasonings one more time. This dish can handle a lot of salt, so taste, taste, taste!
7. Pour mixture into a buttered 9x13 casserole dish and top with panko bread crumbs and crispy fried onions.
8. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
9. Enjoy rave reviews at your family's holiday dinner