Frugal French Friday: Green Beans with Shallots and Pancetta

Clean Out the Fridge Month, which was nearly two months in duration, came to a back-breaking climax when we thoroughly cleaned our refrigerator this week. It took hours, and our blue recycling bin was quickly filled to the brim with empty jars, cans, and bottles. When we were finished, I tackled the pantry shelves, a two-day effort.

Our next project is the freezer. Right now, because of my recent flurry of soup-and-stew-making activity, the freezer is filled with individual servings. The contents should see us through the next three months.

Now my task is to eat up what's in the freezer before buying or making more. First challenge: A bag of frozen organic green beans.

What do you do with a bag of frozen green beans? I'm not the first person to ask that question. Here's an approach I really liked. I will try that sometime.

Given what I had on hand and what I wanted the dish to accompany, this recipe was a good alternative.

(You can never go wrong making Elise Bauer's classic blog, Simply Recipes, your first stop when you need a recipe that fits a specific ingredient, season, or occasion. Her ingredients are generally very accessible. I love that she wasn't afraid to use Ritz Crackers as an ingredient recently. This is how real people eat.)

This tasty side dish was incredibly simple to make and incredibly delicious to eat. The pancetta was a great foil for the blandess of green beans, and the shallots held the two flavors together nicely.

Cost: The total came to about $4. This is a side dish that will yield 3-4 servings, at about $1 per serving. I would serve this with chicken and roast potatoes. Or, make it with your Thanksgiving turkey, in place of that other green bean casserole.

Wine Pairing: Of course, this depends on what else you are serving. I'd go with a dry, crisp white. But experimenting is 50 percent of the fun.