Baked Green Beans

Today's post is my green bean revelation.  I've always loved green beans and grew up eating them out of the can.  They've been my go-to veggie because buying a can, throwing it in a pot of water, and letting it go has been so easy.  Josh HATES green beans.  He made that abundantly clear at some point when we talked about veggies and has never backed down.  Until now!  When we were at Disney World, he had green beans with an entree at one of their amazing restaurants and loved them.  I realized in that moment it wasn't the veggie he hated, it was the texture and flavor.  So, I started buying fresh green beans and playing around with them and I finally stumbled across something that works and that my husband loves. Now I fight him for green beans because he wants to eat them all.  Go figure!

Ingredients
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs garlic powder
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/2-1 tsp pepper
3 cups fresh green beans

Weight Watchers Info: Serves 3, 1 point per serving -- I usually take half and call it 2 pts!

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees*.

Cut the ends off your fresh beans, wash, and dry them (my beans are starting to have brown spots-- brown spots are not ideal, but they're not bad either).

Put the beans in a bowl.  Pour 1 tablespoon of oil over the beans and mix the oil all over giving them a good coat with your hand.  Pour on about 1 tbs garlic salt and anywhere from 1/2 to 1 tsp pepper and then salt depending on how spicy/salty you want them.  I eyeball it, but I'd say I use about 1 tsp pepper and 3/4 tsp salt.  Sea salt is even more ideal!  Now give your beans another good toss with your hand (it'll be oily and gross) and then dump them onto a baking sheet or dish lined with foil (not necessary, it just makes for easier clean up).  Pop those babies into the oven and let them cook 20-30 minutes depending on how crunchy you like them.  I like them less crunchy but still with a little bite and let them go 30 minutes.  You may have to check on your beans about halfway through and give the pan a shake.  Your littlest ones may brown a bit, but maybe you have someone in your life who likes browned things who will eat those?  For me, that's Josh.

I hope you enjoy these green beans!  I LOVE them and we eat green beans all the time now.  I serve them with casseroles, chicken... they pair nicely with so many things!  And, as an added bonus, Joel likes them too and I'll cook any veggie over and over again if that means he'll eat it!

*I don't ALWAYS cook my beans at 400.  If I'm baking something else I throw them in with it and just adjust my times by keeping an eye on them.  I find 350 generally takes more like 40-45 minutes and 425 can take 15-25 minutes.  Just use your judgement and don't be afraid to taste as you cook!  That's the best way to figure out how you like things and what flavors/textures work for you!