Green Bean Casserole

This is fresh, people. No canned veggies or condensed soup here. And it's the bomb.

3 lbs green beans, strung and snapped
2T unsalted butter
2T fresh thyme
2T fresh chives
2T olive oil
2 pounds mixed mushrooms (I use button, shitake, cremini, and portobello, but you can really use whatever you like)
2 shallots, sliced
1c heavy cream
salt and pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add some salt and the green beans. If you like your green beans crisp, cook them for about 5 minutes, as they will cook more in the oven. If you like them more tender, cook for 8-10 minutes. Drain them and set aside.
Melt the butter and olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and shallots, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the shallots are tender and the mushrooms have released all their liquid. Pour in the cream, thyme, and chives, and cook for 5 more minutes. Add the green beans and stir well. Season to taste. Pour the mixture into a greased baking dish and top with desired topping (choices listed below). Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly.

*Toppings*

Croutons:
1 loaf crusty Italian bread
1T fresh chives
1T fresh thyme leaves
1T fresh rosemary
2T parmesan cheese
3T olive oil

Cube bread (2" cubes). Put them in a bowl with all the ingredients and mix well. Spread onto a baking sheet and bake at 375 until it turns just golden (about 10 min). If using the croutons, sprinkle a little more parmesan cheese on top of everything before baking.

Fried onion strings:
1 large onion
1 egg plus dash of milk
1c flour
1t garlic powder
1t season salt
1t salt
1/2 t pepper
peanut oil or other frying oil

Mix egg and milk to make a batter coating.
Mix flour, garlic powder, season salt, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
Heat oil to 350 degrees. Thinly slice your onion into rings. In batches, dip in egg mixture and lift out, letting excess egg drip off. Toss in the flour mixture until coated. Shake off excess and fry in hot oil, about 3 minutes, until golden. Place on paper towels to drain and repeat with remaining onions. Use enough to coat the casserole. You don't need to add these until the last 5 or 10 minutes of baking time. Place unused onion strings in an airtight container. Will keep for about 2 weeks. Longer if stored in the fridge.

Or you can just use a can of French's fried onions if you want to cut down on your work.

*I use the homemade onion strings - they're a lot easier than they sound, and they are amazing!!!