Mom's Green Beans

I was grocery shopping at Wal-mart yesterday, and a huge mound of fresh green beans on sale caught my attention. It instantly reminded me of the times my mom would send me to Sav-a-Center to stand there and carefully pick out all the "good" green beans to bring home for dinner. Then she taught me how to snap the ends using my fingernails, and if they're too long, she told me to snap them in half. What I don't remember is how she cooked them, but thank God for the internet! I picked up this easy and delicious French recipe, and it turned out just the way I wanted. If you're interested, I included it below. I had no intentions of buying any fresh foods to cook, but it was nice to re-live this memory... and get a nice, fresh side dish out of it. ;)

As many of my friends know, I'm not a cook. I know this because I realized I've been trying out recipes and experimenting for several years, and I don't believe my cooking intuitions have improved in any way, nor have I gained any further desire in cooking more. The only motivation I have to cook comes from wanting to feed my husband when he comes home from work, but that doesn't really work out because he eats dinner at work since he's there so late. Oh, and to top things off, he was raised on authentic (key word = authentic!) Vietnamese dishes. I've attempted to learn from my sister-in-law and other Vietnamese friends, but if my frustration exceeds my enjoyment, I think it's time to take a hint, don't you think? :)

It boggled my mind when fellow Vietnamese friends are shocked when they discover I haven't a clue as to how to put together the simplest of Vietnamese dishes or what two sauces combined makes a specific dipping sauce. It was as if every Vietnamese family had to know. My response would always be something along the lines of, "Sorry, my mom never cooked." or "Sorry, my mom was too busy to cook." I guess the same went for my lack of speaking Vietnamese... "Sorry, my parents never spoke to me in Vietnamese." When I was younger, there were times where I felt so guilty and shameful because of my lack of culture. I knew it wasn't my fault, but I still felt bad.

Everything we have, we were given for a reason... even our own parents. I believe God blesses us with the kind of parents we could learn the most from, and also blesses us with the demeanor to receive, wisdom to discern and grace to forgive. My mom may not have taught me everything, but what she did teach me, she taught well. She taught me how to run a business -- which later taught me to stay out of business! She taught me how to trust -- and also when not to trust. She taught me how to speak and write properly (perhaps I should include her in an acknowledgement section?). She taught me how to never give up and to keep pressing through, because there's no one I know who did that better than her. Heck, she even taught me how to use a cash register and "coi chung" or "watch out" (for stealing customers, haha) -- this definitely gave me a sharp eye for suspicious activity! There may be times where we feel so convinced that the mothers we end up with was a huge mistake, but if you ask God to reveal to you your mother's purpose in your life, it will become easier to appreciate her by realizing what you wouldn't have without her. And even if you think you were tossed the worst of the bunch, you start to find valuable lessons even from their mistakes. When we find beauty in ashes, the rewards are even more rewarding.

Here's the recipe. If my mom reads this (I hear she stalks my blogs), she'll most likely send me her own recipe and encourage me to do it her way. I'll be sure to post it up if she does. :)

French Green Bean Recipe
Bring a pot of water to a boil, add green beans and blanch for 3-4 minutes (just until they turn bright green). Drain water, return beans to dry pan and put back on burner to get all excess water off. Add a generous dallop of butter and a handful of freshly chopped parsley and garlic. Saute for a couple of minutes until butter is melted and beans are heated through. Garnish with a bit more parsly if desired. Voila!