Sweet and Savory Green Bean, Roasted Grape and Candied Pecans

This is one of those side dishes that you don’t just make for a weeknight family meal. It’s decadent and a bit over the top and flexes your flavor combination skills. But if you have guests and you want to impress with something really special… this is it.

I dont know about you but for me, the best ever flavor combination is sweet and savory. It pairs so perfectly with rich meats like duck or fatty steaks or roast chickens. Which really means this dish is perfect for the holidays but i eat it year round because i’m boujee like that.

While this dish has three separate components, it’s really extremely easy to throw together. While the pecans candy, roast the grapes, while the grapes are roasting, lightly char the green beans. That’s it. Throw it all together, drizzle some vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Done. So ridiculously decadent and delicious. If you want to take this side dish over the top, you can finish it with crumbles of goat cheese. Which is just heavenly with this dish, but i’m going to leave it up to you to decide the final direction of this dish.

Give it a try. Leave your feedback and love below! If you make this and share on social media, tag the picture with the hashtag #hungrilyhomemaderecipes.

Total time: 40 minutes

Yield: 4-5 adult servings

Ingredients:

for the candied pecans

1. 1 cup halved pecans

2. 1/4 pure maple syrup

3. 1 tsp cinnamon powder

4. 2 tbsp salted butter

for the green beans

1. 1 tbsp ghee

2. 1 lb green beans

3. 2 tsp salt

4. 1 tsp ground black pepper

5. 3-4 tbsp balsamic vinegar

for the roasted grapes

1. 1 vine of red grapes

2. 1 tbsp olive oil

Method:

1. Begin by preparing the pecans- In a large skillet, add all of the ingredients for the maple pecans and set the heat to low. You will prepare the maple pecans and the roasted grapes at the same time. After starting the process for the pecans skip to step number 5 to begin on the grapes.

2. Allow the butter to melt slowly and continuously mix the ingredients every minute to ensure all of the pecans are well coated and do not burn or stick to the bottom of the skillet.

3. The butter and maple syrup mixture should begin to thicken around the pecans while you stir. Once you notice that the syrup mixture has completely coated the pecans and no syrup remains pooled in the skillet, remove the pecans from the skillet and lay them on a piece of parchment paper to cool. With a wooden spoon, separate the pecans from each other while they are still hot so they do not stick together.

4. Let cool for 10 minutes before adding to the green bean dish.

5. While you’re preparing the pecans, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Place the grapes on a parchment lined baking sheet and drizzle the olive oil overtop to lightly coat the grapes.

7. Place the baking sheet in the oven and allow the grapes to roast for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven once the grapes are tender and lightly caramelized. Remove each grape from the vine.

8. While the grapes are roasting and the pecans are candying, prepare the green beans by placing a skillet on medium-high heat with the ghee.

9. Once the ghee has melted, add the green beans to the skillet and toss quickly. Cook for 5 minutes over medium-high heat until some of the beans are lightly charred on the outside but the vibrant green color remains on the beans.

10. Once the beans have finished lightly cooking, the pecans have candied and cooled and the grapes have roasted, add the roasted grapes, candied pecans and green beans to your serving platter. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over top, sprinkle the salt and pepper and then toss the entire dish together to coat the beans, pecans and grapes with the vinegar, salt and pepper.

11. Serve the dish at room temperature. If you like, you can crumble goat cheese overtop as well!