Shew Shew Beans
I’m writing this post from my phone, in the dark, in the glider in my son’s nursery while everyone is asleep except insomniacs, garbage men, actual owls and me. And this baby; always this baby. I would’ve written it sooner but a lot of things had to happen first, things I used to take for granted: I had to be able to prepare the dish, photograph it in daylight, transfer and edit the photos, think of an interesting way to present the recipe, and ultimately, find time to sit down and write it.
So after the third or fourth try (good thing we make these green beans regularly, or I might’ve let a lot of good produce rot in the fridge waiting for this post), I gave in and adapted to reality.
I cooked the dish for dinner, after putting Mr. Baby to bed. Forget daylight. Forget photographing it alongside a beautiful meal, too. I made it with fish sticks. We were hungry and it was late and I hadn’t defrosted anything. I snapped a few quick shots without much attention to styling or composition because it was getting cold and I didn’t want to eat cold vegetables for dinner. I forwent editing and just resized the stupid nighttime photos and now here we are, with nothing interesting to say. Just you, me and the Thrasher in the middle of the night, a time I was frankly going to be fiddling with my phone anyway. So this is how I’ve managed to shoehorn this in.
All this to say, essentially, we are much busier people than we used to be and there’s just no messing around with fussy recipes because we need to get fed and fast. This recipe for green beans is one of the tastiest and most nutritious things we eat regularly because it’s easy and it’s quick. If I had to, I know I could make it with one hand. It gives busy new parents like us something to look forward to at the end of a long day, and that is valuable.
Man, am I ever sick of typing on my phone. Do you know I keep getting the word peyote instead of people? I should just take peyote out of the dictionary. I never, ever talk about peyote. Except for right now. Who talks about peyote? What is there even to say about peyote? In a text, no less? What the hell kind of text would that be? I should send somebody a text about peyote, just to see if I can make it seem natural. Too bad nobody else is up in the middle of the night when I have time to text.
See, too many distractions. This is why I don’t do this stuff from my phone.
The recipe is good, though. Rock solid. Give it a shot.
Garlic Cashew Green Beans
A.k.a. Shew Shew Beans
Serves 4 (but it is so delicious, 2 can finish it)
- 1lb green beans
- 2Tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4oz cashew halves and pieces
- Trim ends from green beans and cut or break into bite size (about two inch) pieces.
- Pour oil into a wide skillet over medium heat, then add garlic and allow to sautee one minute. Add cashews, toss with garlic and oil, and toast for two minutes. Add green beans, toss again, and allow to cook until just softened, about 10 minutes, stirring and tossing frequently to prevent nuts from burning.
- Season lightly with salt (you’ll need less if your nuts are salted) and pepper; serve hot.
Afterword: Although I typed this post up on my phone, I needed to get to a laptop to format the recipe, so it sat in my drafts folder…for over a month. Disgraceful!
Word After the Afterword: The title! I forgot. “Shew Shew Beans.” What a dumb name! But Publix has this corny labeling for their store brand stuff and their cashew tins have a little drawing of cashews with wheels all in a row and it says “SHEW SHEW TRAIN” underneath. And we have a little jar in the kitchen in which we store our nuts du jour, and it has a chalkboard label, and when we filled it with cashews I drew a little train with a “SHEW SHEW” speech bubble. And you know, now that I’ve gotten this far into the story, I’m finally realizing that it doesn’t contain an excuse for what we call this recipe. We’re just dorks. In conclusion, here is your proof regarding the aforementioned packaging:
