Here’s an easy Spring side dish for healthy green beans! Spring Pesto Green Beans are low in calories have only 5 ingredients and are ready in 10 minutes. Never make plain blanched green beans again!
Green beans are one of Scott’s favorite vegetables. Correction – they are his favorite. He’ll eat most anything I make for him, but if he had his way, it would be green beans more often than not. So, I’m always looking for little tweaks to the standard blanched green bean recipe and these Spring Pesto Green Beans provide a quick and easy twist.
With just 5 ingredients and 10 minutes, this simple side dish is ready for the table and goes great with any grilled, roasted or pan-fried protein. Best of all, it can be served hot, at room temperature or chilled. To start, just trim the beans with a sharp paring knife and drop them into boiling salted water for a few minutes until they’re just crisp tender.
While the beans are blanching, toast a handful of almonds (or pine nuts) on a baking sheet until they’re golden and fragrant. (Toasted nuts are one of the easiest ways to add flavor and crunch to many dishes).
Pesto is the real hero of this easy side dish. You can use a store-bought pesto if that’s what you’ve got on hand (my daughter swears by the Costco brand) or make your own. I have three pesto recipes on this site, this one is a classic version with pine nuts, this one has walnuts and other one has pistachios. The thing they all have in common is that the recipes make batches that can be frozen in smaller portions so they’re ready whenever you need them. One “ice” cube of pesto contains 2-3 tablespoons of sauce, which is the perfect amount for a side dish like this. I defrost my cubes for 10-15 seconds in the microwave while the beans and nuts cook.
To serve the green beans hot, just blanch them and toss with the pesto. For a chilled or room temperature side, blanch the beans as normal and then shock them in ice water. I’ve found the easiest method to transfer the steaming hot beans to the ice bath is with a pair of tongs. The frigid plunge will stop the cooking and let the beans retain their beautiful, vibrant green color without fading to gray.
Just two to three tablespoons of pesto is enough to lightly coat the beans.
By the way, tongs are also a very handy way to coat the green beans with pesto. These OXO SoftWorks 9-Inch Locking Tongs {shameless affiliate link} are the ones I use and I love them because they’re the perfect length, have an easy locking mechanism and they act as a natural extension of my hand. I also have some silicone tipped ones so I don’t scratch my nonstick pans.
With a vegetable peeler, shave some Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padana over the beans and sprinkle with the toasted nuts. This simple side dish pairs with so many things, it’s bound to be a favorite with your family as it is with mine.
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Spring Pesto Green Beans
ingredients
- 1 pound green beans trimmed
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons pesto sauce preferably homemade
- 2 tablespoons sliced almonds
- sprinkle shaved parmesan
instructions
TOAST THE ALMONDS
- Preheat the oven to 400°. Lay the almonds on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 5-7 minutes until lightly browned and fragrant. (I start watching the almonds at the 5 minute point to make sure they don't burn).
FOR WARM BEANS:
- Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add the kosher salt and green beans. Cook the beans until they are crisp tender, about 3-5 minutes. Drain the beans well and add the pesto. Use tongs to toss the beans in the pesto until well coated. Transfer the beans to a serving bowl and sprinkle with toasted almonds and shaved parmesan. Serve.
FOR CHILLED/ROOM TEMPERATURE BEANS
- Fill a large bowl with ice and water and set aside.
- Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add the kosher salt and green beans. Cook the beans until they are crisp tender, about 3-5 minutes. Use a spider or slotted spoon to transfer the beans to the ice water to shock them and stop the cooking. When the beans are cold, drain the water and pat them dry with paper towels.
- Add the pesto to the beans. Use tongs to toss the beans in the pesto until well coated. Transfer the beans to a serving bowl and sprinkle with toasted almonds and shaved parmesan. Can be covered and kept refrigerated for a few hours until ready to serve.
Notes
Nutrition
More Easy Vegetable Sides:
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- Rosemary Mustard Potatoes
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- Braised Leeks and Carrots with Toasted Crumb
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- Creamy Dijon Asparagus
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I didn’t like string beans growing up, but that was probably because we had bland canned beans. Yuck. I rediscovered them at least 10 years ago and I can’t believe how much I love fresh beans now! I love your take on the standard string bean recipe, especially with the pesto! So fresh and delicious, not to mention gorgeous!
Thank you, Elaine! I remember those canned green beans from my youth too!
Green beans are my daughters favorite vegetable too! And they both love pesto, so I bet this would be a new favorite for them!
My hubster loves green beans too! You have given me a perfect recipe for using up two current residents of my freezer: 1) my last bit of pesto from the end of the summer and 2) my blanched haricots verts—I buy the 2-pound bags from Costco and immediately blanch, dry, vacuum seal, and freeze them in small batches. I love the addition of the slivered, toasted almonds. I just know this one will be a hit!
Great tip on blanching the beans from Costco!
OMG yum! This is such a great and simple idea. I adore pesto but have never put it on green beans… how have I not thought of that before?! 😉 Topped with sliced almonds and parm – sounds heavenly!
Thanks, Sarah! I hope you enjoy it!
Well, we love green beans, we love pesto, and we love almonds. Now, why haven’t I put those all together?! Thank you for the inspiration — that is a great idea.
I love green beans but am always stuck on ideas for preparing them, so I’m loving this delicious recipe. Pesto is the best!!