Braised Romano Beans with Spicy Cherry Tomato Sauce & Lemony Ground Walnuts

Recipe from https://thefirstmess.com

Husband Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

These braised Romano beans with spicy cherry tomato sauce are a simple and incredibly flavorful side dish. It's also quite delicious as a main dish served with pasta.

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium shallot, small dice
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
½ - 1 teaspoon dried chili flakes or ground chilies (I used Aleppo pepper.)
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon capers, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 lb. cherry tomatoes, halved
sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
½ cup water (If serving this with pasta, use ½ cup of the pasta water instead of plain water.)
¾ lb. green Romano beans**, cut into 2-inch pieces
¼ cup walnut halves (to make this nut free, use sunflower seeds)
½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (I used lime zest because I didn’t have lemon.  It tasted great.)
½ teaspoon tamari soy sauce or 1 teaspoon coconut aminos (to make it soy free)
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
chili oil for garnish (optional)

Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, pour in the olive oil and swirl it around. Add the shallot and thyme to the pan and stir. Cook until the shallots are translucent and soft, stirring often, about 3-4 minutes. If the shallots are browning on the edges, lower the heat.
Add the chili and smoked paprika to the pan and stir for about 30 seconds. Then, add the capers and minced garlic. Keep stirring until the garlic is very fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste to the pan and break it up with the back of your spoon. Keep stirring and mashing the bits of tomato paste until it has darkened a shade or two. Again, if you’re experiencing rapid browning/drying of the pan here, just lower the heat.
Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan and stir. Season with salt and pepper. Once the cherry tomatoes let off some juices and start bubbling, keep the heat at this level. Simmer the cherry tomato sauce base for 5 minutes. Then, add the water to the pan and stir. Let the sauce simmer another 5 minutes. The sauce should be slightly thick but still fluid enough to move around the pan easily.
Add the cut green Romano beans to the pan along with some extra salt and pepper. Stir to coat the beans in the sauce. Bring the sauce and beans to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer. Cover the beans and continue to simmer until they are tender and the sauce has thickened around the beans, about 12-15 minutes. I like to lift the lid and check in on the beans here and there, giving it a stir each time.
While the beans are simmering, finely chop the walnuts and mix them together in a small bowl with the lemon zest and a pinch of salt. You could also grind this mixture up in a mini food processor if you like.
Once the Romano beans are done simmering, stir in the ½ teaspoon of tamari soy sauce. Check the dish for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Serve the braised Romano beans warm with the lemony walnut mixture and parsley sprinkled on top. Garnish with chili oil if you like.

**Recipe Notes
You could definitely make this with regular green beans, but the experience will be a bit different. The Romano beans have a meaty quality that works so nicely here. That said, regular green beans would still be tasty! I’d simply leave them whole rather than cutting them. They will likely need less simmering time--I’d start checking at the 8 minute mark.