Easy Zesty Green Beans.

Cooking these days is hard.  I have a three-year-old with constant questions, and things to show me, and more questions, and problems only Mommy can solve, and more questions; and a one-year-old who gets into everything, finds creative ways to get into everything and reach everything and eat everything, and can't go three minutes without a hug.  I love them dearly, but dear Lord is it hard sometimes to set aside a good chunk of time--especially at a specific time of day--to put the effort into making dinner.

My favorite dishes are the kind that take no more than five minutes to make, can be made at any time during the day and left in the fridge or on the counter until cooking time, and can be left alone in the oven or crockpot without needing to be baby-sat.

This is one of those dishes.

Three-ingredient two-minute-prep green beans.

This simple dish was inspired by the Lazy Chicken Dinner I often make.  It's an easy way to add a quick veggie side to any meal that's already going in the oven.

All you need:

Ingredients.

• 1 can (14.5 oz) green beans
• 2 tsp (half a packet) Zesty Italian dressing mix
• 3 Tbsp butter

The above amounts are all we need for our small family (two adults and a three-year-old), but it's an easy recipe to double (and then you don't have to measure out half the packet!) for more people.

All you do is...

Dump the green beans in an oven-safe dish.

Sprinkle the Zesty Italian dressing mix over the beans (I usually stir a little to make sure they all get seasoned).

Top with pats of butter.

Cover with foil.

Pop it in the oven!  Thirty minutes at 350 is a good baseline, but I've put it in for less time at a higher temperature, too, and it's turned out just as good.  Really, just pop it in with whatever else is cooking!

Done!  Definitely one of my favorite go-to veggie dishes--so easy, and it tastes great!

And for your cut-and-paste convenience:

Easy Zesty Green Beans

• 1 can (14.5 oz) green beans
• 2 tsp (half packet) Zesty Italian dressing mix
• 3 Tbsp butter

1. Dump green beans in oven-safe dish.
2. Sprinkle with dressing mix.
3. Top with pats of butter.
4. Cover with foil.
5. Bake for 30 minutes at 350, or adjust time for higher temperature.

Enjoy!  Eat your veggies! :-)