I love experimenting in the kitchen as failure is good as we learn from it and keep improving our dishes until they are perfected.

We use a lot of unique ingredients sometimes that can be pricey but with smart shopping, you can make gourmet recipes at a fraction of the price.

Below is a rundown of how I made this recipe cheaper than buying the ingredients at the “everyday price” others pay:

This time of year green beans are on sale and I was able to price match them at Walmart for $.79 a pound versus their everyday low price of $1.96 per pound. By doing this, we saved a nice chunk of change for our green bean purchase.

In November and December, we see baking goods on sale and I still have a lot of sugar leftover from last year’s stockpile run.

Balsamic vinegar I stockpiled when Heinz had that awesome $1 off any Heinz vinegar coupon. Most people were getting the jars for $.14 but I bought vinegar I knew our family would use more of… Balsamic and Red Wine Vinegar!

Shallots and garlic you rarely see on sale so these items you will have to pay full price. Normally we will buy our garlic in bulk at either Costco or the jars of peeled that Walmart sales {we use  A LOT of garlic}.

Please note that the green bean recipe called for sliced and toasted almonds but mine didn’t slice and Chef Bob didn’t want to use them. Instead, he substituted mushrooms.

Yes, I added the spoon to the photo and got a frown from “the chef” as he doesn’t use spoons to stir up his mixture.

Below you can how he prefers to mix up his ingredients while in the pan.

He’s a showoff — he is always flipping and sliding food out of our pans.

99.9% of the time he never missed but that .01% is always fun – LOL, and yes it is a mess too.

Once the green beans are seared, you add the balsamic vinegar and water to the pan and add the lid with a small opening to steam the green beans.

I haven’t figured out how much this dish is once cooked {hopped up on too many cold meds} but using the methods I mentioned above I probably saved at least more than half.

Click here to view green bean cookbooks on Amazon.

Green Beans and Mushrooms Recipe

Balsamic Glazed Green Beans and Mushrooms With Almonds

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Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar + 2 teaspoons
• 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 10 ounces green beans {fresh and trimmed}
• 8 oz mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic {peeled and smashed}
• 1 shallot {cut into 1/4" disks}
• salt and pepper {we use Kosher and fresh medium cracked pepper}
• 1 tablespoon butter, unsalted {cut into 4 pieces}
• Almonds for garnish

Instructions

1. Combine 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and sugar. {save the 2 teaspoons for later}
2. Heat a pan or wok over high heat for 2 minutes and then add the olive oil once the pan is hot.
3. After a few seconds add the green beans, mushrooms, garlic, and shallot.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste {we like ours with lots of fresh cracked pepper}.
5. Cook 3 - 4 minutes or until they start to brown.
6. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the 1/4 cup of water {CAREFUL - it will steam}
7. A few seconds later add the vinegar mixture from Step 1.
8. Stir the mixture and with the lid ajar, cover and cook until the green beans are tender.
9. Stir in the remaining balsamic vinegar.
10. Add the butter and garnish with almonds
11. Serve immediately.

Notes

If the water evaporates before the green beans are tender, add small amounts until they are tender, yet crunchy.
Add sliced and toasted almonds at the end.
Modified recipe from <em>The Best of Fine Cooking</em>

Green Beans and Mushrooms