Spanish Green Bean Casserole

Ingredients:

1.5 pounds green beans (trimmed and cut into 1 in. pieces)

0.5 pounds snow peas (trimmed and cut into 1 in. pieces)

2 red, yellow, or orange bell peppers

1 onion chopped

3 tsp olive oil 4 oz. Gouda cheese (grated)

5 slices crusty, country-style sourdough bread (cut into 1/2 in. cubes)

2 oz canned tomato paste

1.5 cups water

2 Tbsp all purpose flour Cooking spray

Cooking Directions:

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a large casserole dish with cooking spray.

2.) Cook green beans and snow peas in boiling water for 10 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and rinse with cold water, then drain again.

3.) Heat 1 tsp of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, until tender but not brown.

4.) Combine cooked green beans and snow peas, sautéed onions, chopped peppers, and grated cheese in the prepared casserole dish along with 1/3 of the bread cubes. Set aside.

5.) To prepare the sauce, heat the remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add flour and mix. Combine tomato paste and water, add to pan. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

6.) Pour sauce over vegetable mixture inside casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining bread cubes.

7.) Bake casserole for 30 minutes at 350 degrees or until sauce is bubbly and bread cubes are a light golden brown.

Serve and enjoy!