By Year two. And the crawfish are already running like they've got somewhere to be. I did a sixty-pound boil on Saturday — neighbors invited themselves, which is how it works on Claycut Drive: you fire up the burner and within twenty minutes the street knows, and within forty minutes there are lawn chairs in your driveway and people holding beers they brought from their own refrigerators because the Beaumont BYOB policy is well established and non-negotiable.
Carl was first, because Carl has a sixth sense for boiling water. Janet brought deviled eggs. Tee-Claude showed up with his entire family, all six of them, and a bag of ice that was already melting. Shannon from Danielle's school brought a fruit salad, which nobody ate because we are at a crawfish boil and fruit salad is what you eat when you're not at a crawfish boil. But it was there, and Shannon was proud, and we put it on the table next to the newspaper where it sat, untouched, radiating good intentions.
Rémy turned five last week. Five. I remember bringing him home from the hospital in 2011 — tiny, red-faced, furious at the world for existing — and now he's five and standing on the step stool and telling me the water needs more cayenne, and he's right. He's always right about the seasoning. This boy has a palate that defies science. He tasted the boil water on Saturday — dipped his finger in, the way Joey used to, the way I do — and said, "More garlic, Papa." More garlic. He's five. I added garlic. The crawfish were perfect. I'm raising a prodigy, cher. A tiny, garlic-demanding prodigy.
Luc won the school science fair with his coastal erosion project. First place. The board showed before-and-after satellite images of Terrebonne Parish — the vanishing islands, the marsh turning to open water, the land that was there when Joey was fishing and isn't there now. The judges were impressed. I was proud and heartbroken in equal measure, because my son won a prize for documenting the death of the place his grandfather loved, and I don't know how to feel both of those things at once, but I feel them, and the roux keeps turning.
Made a shrimp remoulade to celebrate — cold Gulf shrimp on a bed of shredded lettuce, drizzled with remoulade sauce: mayo, Creole mustard, horseradish, capers, green onion, a dash of hot sauce. It's a New Orleans dish, technically, but I've claimed it for the Beaumont table because good food doesn't have borders, and also because Danielle loves it and requesting it is how she celebrates things, and "let's get shrimp remoulade" is Danielle-speak for "I'm happy."
That night, after the celebration and the complicated feelings had settled into something quieter, I wanted to cook something simple — not a statement, not a dish with a story attached, just something honest and good that wouldn’t ask anything of me. Green beans amandine is that dish: a little butter, a little crunch, a brightness from the lemon that doesn’t try to be more than it is. Here’s how I made it.
Green Beans Amandine
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans, stem ends trimmed
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for blanching water
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Blanch the beans. Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook 3 to 4 minutes, until just tender but still bright green. Drain immediately and transfer to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Drain again and pat dry.
- Toast the almonds. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the sliced almonds and cook, stirring frequently, 3 to 4 minutes until golden and fragrant. Remove almonds from the pan and set aside.
- Build the garlic butter. In the same skillet, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook 30 to 45 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant but not browned.
- Toss and season. Add the blanched green beans to the skillet and toss to coat in the garlic butter. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Cook 2 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the beans are heated through.
- Finish and serve. Remove from heat. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and toasted almonds. Toss once more and transfer to a serving platter. Serve immediately alongside whatever’s coming out of the boil pot.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 138 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 10g | Carbs: 10g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 195mg