Roasted green beans, tomatoes and onions

On Saturday I bought some good, freshly picked green beans at a local farm stand, stashed them in the fridge---and promptly forgot about them.  Today I wasn't terribly motivated to cook, but when I spied them in my crisper guilt compelled me to do something with them.  I also have some of my dwindling tomato supply, so I decided to roast them with onions and fresh oregano.  The odor of the roasting vegetables was so nice, it made me forget my inflamed sinuses.

This dish contains fresh oregano from my garden, which reminded me that the first anniversary of Weekend Herb Blogging is approaching. Go over to Kalyn's site and see how she's pulling out all the stops for this occasion, which will be this weekend. Now is the time to cook a recipe with your favorite herb! 

This recipe is so simple. The tomatoes aren't peeled or seeded--just chopped and mixed with the trimmed green beans, olive oil, and chopped onions.  It's all roasted in a large pan for about 40 minutes, filling the house with a wonderful smell of onions and oregano. As always, roasting brings out the best in vegetables.  I served this with roasted chicken and crusty bread from the store.  It tastes equally good, hot or at room temperature.

Roasted green beans, tomatoes and onions   (Williams-Sonoma)

2 lb. green beans, trimmed
1 large white onion, chopped
3 large tomatoes, chopped
4 tsp. minced fresh oregano or 2 tsp. dried
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
capers

Preheat an oven to 425ºF.

To prepare the green beans, bring a large saucepan three-fourths full of water to a boil over high heat. Add a pinch of salt and the green beans. Cook the beans until they turn bright green and are just tender, 1 to 2 minutes. The timing will depend on the age and size of the beans. Drain the beans and plunge them into a bowl of ice-cold water to stop the cooking. Drain and set aside.

Combine the onion and tomatoes in a heavy large baking dish. Add the green beans and oregano, and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the olive oil over the vegetables and toss to coat. Cover with aluminum foil and roast until the beans are tender-crisp, about 20 minutes. Uncover the dish and continue roasting until just tender, 15 to 20 minutes more (for a total roasting time of 35 to 40 minutes). Stir the beans 3 or 4 times during roasting. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Transfer the bean mixture to a serving bowl or platter and serve hot or at room temperature, with capers sprinkled on top.

Comments

[Kalyn]

Hey, thanks for the mention of WHB and I see that oregano is not your very favorite herb.

[Julie]

What a wonderful thing to do to a green bean. If my mother had made green beans like this when I was a child I'd have always cleaned my plate and asked for seconds.

[aria]

yum! i never thaught to roast grean beans, who'da thunk it?! the capers are a nice touch. i bet its awsome chilled. glad ur feeling a litte better tooo
:)