Green Beans with Toasted Garlic

Fresh green beans are just beginning to pop up at farmer’s markets in my area and this is one of my favorite quick and easy green bean recipes. The green beans go great with the lemon and toasted garlic and it works as a perfect side dish for just about anything. Substitute the green beans for broccoli, sugar snap peas, asparagus, or almost any vegetable and it makes a great side dish. If possible, use fresh green beans so they maintain their crunch.

Green Beans with Toasted Garlic
Servings: 4
Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe, about 1/2 cup
Nutritional Info: 30.3 calories, 1.2 g of fat, 4.7 g of carbohydrates, 1.9 g of fiber 1.1 g of protein * 1 P+

Ingredients
1/2 pound fresh green beans
1 tsp olive oil
Juice of 1/2 lemon
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Warm the olive oil (and additional cooking spray if needed) in a saute pan over medium.

2. Add green beans and garlic. Cook, stirring gently for 6-8 minutes until green beans are just tender and the garlic is toasted but not burnt.

3. Squeeze lemon juice over the green beans and add salt and pepper to taste.