This cranberry green beans recipe is fabulous holiday side dish that features some of the very best flavors of the season! Fresh cranberries cooked down with orange zest and juice blanket crisp green beans and serve as a festive landscape for wedges of brie cheese. The whole dish feels so elegant while still being incredibly easy to prepare. It’s an unbeatable vegetarian side dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas!
Holiday recipe season is in full swing in the Veg World, and I’m always excited to provide new ways to jazz up the veggie side dishes on your table. This year, I felt compelled to focus on fresh cranberries, since they don’t get a lot of love on here.
I then thought of ways that cranberries are used in holiday dishes, like cranberry sauce, baked brie with cranberries, and orange-spiked cranberries. This recipe draws on flavors from all of these cranberry preparations and uses green beans as the base to complete the festive color palette. It’s a simple yet delicious side that I can’t wait to make on repeat over the years!
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Ingredients and Substitutions
- Green beans: Use fresh or frozen when making green beans with cranberries. You can swap in French green beans (haricots verts) if desired, but keep in mind that they need a shorter cook time since they are thinner. Frozen green beans, on the other hand, need a slightly longer cook time.
- Cranberries: Fresh or frozen both work.
- Maple syrup: Sub honey or granulated sugar.
- Orange juice and zest: Orange and cranberry is an unbeatable combo. If you don’t have orange, you can substitute lemon juice and zest.
- Brie cheese: If you’re not a brie fan, you can substitute other creamy cheeses to dollop on top of your cranberry green beans. Camembert or goat cheese can be used, but they have different flavors.
Instructions
The full recipe card for cranberry green beans is at the bottom of the post. Here’s a preview of the very easy steps!
Cook the green beans until crisp-tender, being careful to avoid overcooking and making them mushy.
Toss the green beans in melted butter, salt, and pepper.
Cook the cranberries, orange juice and zest, and water in a saucepan until cooked down into a sauce.
Arrange the dish. Spread the green beans on a platter, top with cranberry sauce, and add wedges of brie cheese.
Storage and Make Ahead
This recipe is best enjoyed right away, but you can make the cranberry sauce ahead of time and keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Just reheat and assemble the dish with freshly cooked green beans when it’s time to eat.
If you want to make this recipe for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and can’t make it right before you sit down to eat, no problem! Just make it when you can as you prepare the meal or before you head to your host’s home. Gently reheat it in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. The brie is delicious if it’s slightly melted. The recipe also tastes good at room temperature.
More Green Bean Recipes
Love these holiday cranberry green beans?! Check out some other good recipes for the season while you’re here.
📖 Recipe
Cranberry Green Beans with Brie
Ingredients
- 1 cup cranberries - fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 teaspoon orange zest - plus more for garnish
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 pound green beans - washed and trimmed
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Salt - to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper - to taste
- 4 ounces brie cheese - cut into small wedges or pieces
Instructions
- Combine the cranberries, maple syrup, orange juice and zest, and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring frequently, until it thickens into a sauce. This usually takes about 10 to 15 minutes. Keep a close eye on it to prevent scorching. Use the back of a spoon to smash the cranberries as they cook.
- In the meantime, prep the green beans. The best way to cook green beans to prevent them from being soggy is a quick boil. I like to boil them in a skillet since the larger surface area also helps prevent water logging. Add about an inch of water to a large skillet. Bring to a boil, then drop the green beans in the pan. Cook over medium heat to maintain a gentle boil for 2 to 4 minutes until crisp-tender. Drain immediately. You can also boil the green beans in a large pot for 2 to 4 minutes or steam them in a basket (so they're not directly touching water) for 5 to 7 minutes.
- Return the green beans to the skillet with the butter, salt, and pepper. The butter should melt from the heat of the beans and the pan. Stir until coated.
- Transfer the green beans to a platter. Spoon the cranberry sauce over them. Place wedges of brie cheese on top. Garnish with orange zest.
- Serve and enjoy!
- Leave a rating or review by tapping the stars on this recipe card (above) or in the comments section (at the end of the post)!
Notes
- This recipe is easy to double if you are feeding bigger crowds.
- To save prep time (and kitchen space), make the cranberry sauce ahead of time and keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- To make in advance if you are bringing this dish to a host’s home for a holiday meal and/or can’t make the dish right before you sit down to eat, make and assemble the dish when you can that day. Cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap and keep in the fridge. Before serving, reheat for 10 to 15 minutes in a preheated oven. It’s OK if the brie melts a little (it tastes great that way). The dish also tastes good at room temperature, so don’t worry about serving it piping hot.
- You can sub French green beans (haricots verts), but keep in mind they will need a shorter cooking time. Frozen green beans also work but they will need a longer cooking time (follow package instructions).
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