These quick and easy blanched green beans are seasoned to perfection with salt, pepper, cheesy Boursin, bright sun-dried tomatoes, and toasted nutty almonds for the solid every day or holiday side dish!

them more flavor but takes a lot longer and doesn't preserve their beautiful color.

These silky French style green beans are enhanced with our favorite cheese Boursin. Boursin is a creamy spreadable brand of Gournay cheese that is available with a variety of different spice combinations. Use whichever one suits you best. We often prepare green beans this way for dinner or potlucks and we also always make these for our holiday Thanksgiving and Christmas table. Cheesy sun-dried tomato green beans are always a favorite!

At Avdaye, we add lots of tips in all of our recipes – because we are a home cook without any formal training, and we find we are more confident making dishes when we understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe. Our goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.

How to Make Cheesy Sun-Dried Tomato Baked Green Beans

First you will need to assemble the following ingredients:

French green beans (1 lb) – French green beans are more tender than regular green beans and have thinner skin which makes them ideal for cooking without a bunch of prep ahead of time.
Salted butter (2 tbsp) – some fat in butter helps spread the other ingredients around and adds some richness to the dish.
Slivered almonds (3 tbsp) – almonds have a wonderful nutty, earthy flavor that we love with green beans. Slivered almonds allow all those flavors to come out.
Oil packed sun-dried tomatoes (¼ cup) – drained sun-dried tomatoes have a chewy pungent umami flavor. They add that robust Mediterranean flare to the green beans.
Sea salt (½ tsp) – some fine grain sea salt is suited to seasoning the green beans and drawing out all the flavors.
Black pepper – a little fresh ground pepper helps balance things out with some spice.
Boursin cheese or grated parmesan (2 oz) – this creamy cheese is a spreadable type of Gournay cheese. There are many varieties of Boursin you can use whichever you like best. You can also use fresh grated parmesan for that extra cheesy flavor.

Once you have assembled the ingredients use this method

Blanch

Heat a pot of water and blanch the green beans for 4-5 minutes until they are brighter in color and bend easily. Remove them in the pan and submerge in ice water to stop more cooking and preserve the bright color.

Toast and Combine

Place the pan back on the stove, melt the butter and add the almonds. Next brown the almonds stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat, add the green beans, sun dried tomatoes, salt, pepper, and cheese. Toss to coat. Enjoy warm or at room temperature!

Kitchen notes

French style. It is important that you choose French style green beans for this recipe. They have a crispy and bright green color, and the skin is soft which means they don't need to be prepped like other bean types.

Don't overcook. It is important that you don't overcook the green beans. If you overcook them or don't put them in ice water, they will become mushy and bland not tender and crisp like we want.

Season to taste. Before you serve the green beans make sure that you taste them and add more salt if necessary.

Beware of time. Remember that thinner green beans will cook faster so adjust the cooking time based on what your green beans look like. The size will vary based on whether they are in season or not.

Use frozen. In the off season try using defrosted green beans instead of off-season fresh beans.

Serve Immediately. You will get the best texture and taste right away so enjoy them when you make them.

A few answers

How do we choose the best fresh green beans at the store?

Look for green beans that are bright green, firm, and free of blemishes and wrinkles, these will make the best cheesy sun-dried green beans.

How do you store leftover green beans?

You can store leftovers in an airtight container or bag in the refrigerator, they will be fresh for up to a week.

Should we remove the strings from the green beans before cooking?

Most green beans are stringless but if you are using older varieties or heirloom, they may have strings and it is best to remove the strings but snapping off the ends and pulling along the seam.

Are green beans a healthy option?

Yes! Green beans are low in calories and a good source of vitamins K, C, folate, and manganese.

Serve it with

Green beans are a great side dish and we love to pair them with one of the following:

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Ingredients

1 lb French green beans
2 tbsp salted butter
3 tbsp slivered almonds
¼ cup oil packed sun dried tomatoes, drained
½ tsp sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper
2 oz Boursin cheese or grated parmesan

Method

Bring a pot of water on the stovetop to a boil.
Blanch green beans in the hot water for 4-5 minutes till they bend easily but are still bright in color. Remove the pan from the heat and immediately submerge the green beans in a bowl of ice water.
Return the pan to the stove on medium heat, add the butter and melt.
Add the almonds to the pot and cook in the butter for a few minutes, stirring constantly, until they are browning.
Remove from the heat, add the green beans, sun dried tomatoes, salt, pepper, and the cheese, toss to coat.
Serve warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!