Strawberry Balsamic Green Bean Salad

Welcome back to QCK!

Yesterday we talked about the importance of eating high fiber, easy to digest foods, especially in stressful times. Today I wanted to continue that conversation by sharing a non-traditional salad recipe.

This is actually a recipe my mom makes during the summer. It’s a really simple balsamic vinaigrette over blanched green beans with sliced strawberries, toasted pine nuts, crumbled goat cheese, and fresh basil. It’s delicious. This was the recipe that showed me how great green beans actually are.

It takes all of ten minutes to make, and no you don’t need to break out the blender to make the dressing, just throw everything in a jar or Tupperware and shake it up.

Beyond the simplicity of this salad, it’s also vitamin rich and digestion friendly, which means no stress on your body after eating. This makes it a great accompaniment to your weekend grill outs. Balancing out the ribs and chicken with a few vegetables, raw and cooked is always a great idea.

Substitutions and Add On’s

• This recipe is actually really delicious as just a traditional salad with mixed greens. A spring mix works best.
• Pine nuts can be substituted for any soft nut, like pecans or walnuts.
• Goat cheese can be substituted for Feta. I like a soft, acidic cheese here to balance out the sweet strawberries.
• Strawberries can be substituted for any berry you like.
• Fresh basil can be substituted for dried, just mix it with the vinaigrette rather than putting it on top.
• If you don’t have honey for the vinaigrette you can substitue granulated sugar or agave, or a sweetener of your choice.

Tips and Tricks

• Using a higher quality balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil will give you a better vinaigrette.
• The amount of sugar and seasoning your vinaigrette will need depends on the balsamic vinegar you use.
• You can toast your nuts either in a sauté pan on medium heat or in the oven. Be sure to watch carefully.
• You do not need to add any fat to your nuts while toasting because they already have their own oils and fat.

Recipe

Prep: 15 Minutes

Cook: 5 Minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 2

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb Fresh Green Beans, ends trimmed if needed
• 1/4 C Balsamic Vinegar
• 1/3 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 Tbsp Honey
• 1/2 tsp Dried Tarragon
• 1/4 tsp Ground Black Pepper
• 1/4 tsp Salt, plus more to taste
• 5-6 Strawberries, sliced
• 2-3 Tbsp Pine Nuts, toasted
• 1-2 Basil leaves, sliced
• 2 Tbsp Goat Cheese, Crumbled

Directions

1. Fill a medium pot 1/4 of the way full with water. Add a little salt. Bring to a boil over high heat.
2. Add green beans and cover. Cook until bright green and soft but not mushy. 5-7 minutes.
3. In a jar or tupperwear with a tight fitting lid, combine vinegar, oil, honey, tarragon, black pepper, and salt. Shake until the oil and vinegar are no longer separated, set aside.
4. Once the green beans are finished, drain them and run them under cold water to stop the cooking process.
5. In a medium bowl, toss the green beans with the vinaigrette and season to taste.
6. Top with strawberries, pine nuts, basil, and goat cheese.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this recipe! If you tried it out let me know in the comments. For more recipes check out my homepage and follow along on Instagram. Don’t forget to like, follow, comment and share. Thanks for reading! 

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