Green Bean Bundles {gluten, dairy, and soy free}

These little bundles of happiness have been a part of my life for years and years. You see, we spent a year living in Tennessee. We experienced a lot of fascinating stuff while we were there, and we made friends with some pretty memorable people. Among those friends? Allison.

Why am I telling you this?? Because Allison first shared this recipe with us when we were invited to celebrate Thanksgiving in her cute little log cabin. I'm pretty sure we've made these at least once a year since. I'm also pretty sure I do things a bit differently than Allison did on that day, because, well, it was a long time ago.

If you even sort of like green beans or bacon, you need to try this recipe. It's life-altering. It will make you regret all of those mushy green bean casseroles you've served over the years.

Change the quantities based on the number of people you're serving, but whatever you do, don't underestimate. Make a lot! My measurements, below, were enough to fill a 9x13 baking dish with bundles.

You'll Need:
Green Beans {we use four cans of whole beans}
Bacon {I used two packages of the uncured variety}
1 C. Earth Balance Spread {use butter if you aren't dairy free}
2 C. Brown Sugar
1 oz. Amaretto {completely optional! I didn't use any this year}
Garlic Powder {just a hearty sprinkle, or more if you really love garlic}
Toothpicks

To Make:
Soft-cook the bacon. I did this by lining baking sheets with parchment paper and baking the bacon for a few minutes at 350 degrees, while it preheated in preparation for our Thanksgiving turkey.
Drain the beans into a large collander and set aside.
After the bacon has cooled enough to work with, cut each strip in half so that you're left with two short strips of bacon.
To make a bundle, arrange several beans in your hand so they make a tidy little "stack," and then wrap the bacon around the center {as pictured above} of the beans. Secure with a toothpick, and place in your baking dish.
Continue wrapping beans in bacon until you've used up your supplies. Don't be afraid to squish the bundles in a bit, as they'll shrink some while they're in the oven. Making neat rows will also help you to fit more in. {I believe I wound up with 32 bundles in my 9x13 dish.}
Place the bacon-wrapped beans in the oven at 350 degrees for a while*, so the bacon continues to cook.
Make your sauce on the stove top. Add the Earth Balance, brown sugar, and garlic powder to a small sauce pan and heat over medium-high heat, until the brown sugar has dissolved completely. If the sauce comes to a boil, don't worry. That's just fine.
When the brown sugar is melted and thoroughly combined, remove the pan from the heat {that's an important one! never add alcohol to a pot that is being heated!} and add the amaretto. Give it a stir to mix.
Pull the beans out of the oven, pour the sauce over the top, and return to the oven.
Let the beans cook a bit longer {20 minutes or so, but a longer amount of time is just fine too*}, and then enjoy!

The beans and bacon, ready for their first round in the oven.

*I've found baking time to be REALLY unimportant with this recipe. I had between four and five baking dishes cycling through my oven at a time on Thanksgiving, as I usually do, and just stashed these in the oven and forgot about them--with the oven set at 325 degrees. I do this every year, and they're always perfect! So don't panic. Just put them in, and let 'em hang out.

Shared on... Allergy Free Wednesdays