Green beans and Brussels sprouts recipe

Minted butter is a great fresh way to spruce up this festive green beans and Brussels sprouts recipe.

At a Thanksgiving Dinner you would rarely see a sprout in attendance. Green beans are the order of the day, so this recipe combines British festive traditions with American ones, to give you the best of both worlds. Unlike Gordon Ramsay's Brussels sprouts recipe, this dish is suitable for vegetarians. Fresh mint, not dried, is essential to get the best flavour. You can do a lot of this recipe in advance, keeping the veg and the butter in the fridge until the last stage, but the whole recipe is very quick anyway.

Ingredients

• 500g (1lb) Brussels sprouts, trimmed
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 250g (8oz) Helda, runner or French beans, trimmed and cut on the diagonal
• 30g (1oz) butter
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint

Method

1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the sprouts and some salt. Bring back to the boil and simmer for 3 minutes. Add the beans, bring back to the boil and cook for another 2 minutes.
2. Drain the vegetables well and run them under cold running water to refresh them. Drain well again. Set aside in bowl until ready to serve.
3. Soften the butter and mix in the mint.
4. Just before serving, put the sprouts and beans in a large bowl. Cover and microwave on high for 3-4 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking, until piping hot. Tip into a serving dish and top with the mint-flavoured butter and plenty of seasoning.

Top tips for making green beans and Brussels sprouts

The best Brussels for a clean and simple recipe like this are small, firm and compact. Later in the season they can get larger, which makes them taste more like cabbage and really large ones can even get a bit bitter. With those we think it’s best to mix them with strong flavoured additions like bacon or chorizo.

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