Green Beans Braised in Tomatoes

This is a great recipe for using up fresh produce from your garden. Don't have a garden? Make this anyway. Some of the best beans I've ever tasted. Seriously.

Adapted from The Complete Italian Vegetarian Cookbook by Jack Bishop. (One of my go-to cookbooks.)

2 T extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, diced smallish

1 - 1.5 cups canned whole tomatoes, chopped, juice reserved (I used fresh, peeled)

1 pound green beans, ends snapped off (I used yellow and green)

1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed with back of a chef's knife (keep it in one or two pieces)

Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

1. Heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add oil. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes until translucent. Add the tomatoes and simmer for about 5 minutes until the juices thicken a bit.

2. Add green beans, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and ground pepper to taste. Stir well. Add some of the reserved juice (I think I added about 1/2 - 1 cup...but do what you think looks good.) Add the smashed garlic clove. Stir well again, reduce heat to medium-low and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the beans are as tender as you like them, but for at least 30 minutes. (This is not an al-dente kind of recipe.) I cooked them for 4o minutes, adding a bit more tomato juice as needed.

3. Remove the smashed garlic clove and serve.

4. Sit back and enjoy the compliments.