Haricots Verts with Bacon and Chestnuts

Searching for a sensational and succulent side dish?  I have just the one, and it’s easy too.  I’ve gone a bit ga-ga over chestnuts lately, so am always looking for new ways in which to use them.   I spotted this recipe on epicurious.com and decided to give it a try.  Am I ever glad that I did, it is so delicious, and rather elegant at the same time. The haricots vert can be cleaned and trimmed the day prior and chilled in a sealable bag lined with paper towels, making it a great make ahead dish.  My guess is that you can cook the bacon ahead and save a tablespoon or so of the bacon grease and assemble things in a flash at a moment’s notice.  Recipes like this make me long for the drop-in guest.

Haricots Verts with Bacon and Chestnuts

1 1/2 pounds haricots verts or other thin green beans, trimmed 
4 bacon slices
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup Melissa's whole peeled and cooked chestnuts, coarsely crumbled

Cook beans in a medium pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 4 quarts water), uncovered, until crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Drain and plunge into an ice bath to stop cooking. Drain well and pat dry.

 
Cook bacon in a large heavy skillet over medium heat until crisp. Drain on paper towels, reserving fat in skillet*, then crumble. Add butter to fat in skillet along with beans, chestnuts, bacon, and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. 

*This was way too much bacon fat for me, so I poured about half of it off to save for another use.

This post is linked to:

On the Menu Monday

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday